Stirring Up Ghosts
by LuckyLadybug
Summary: Post-series, my Pendulum Swings verse. It was supposed to be just a quick weekend trip to New Orleans to collect some of Lector's belongings and visit his sister. But everything goes South fast for the Big Five, Yugi, and everyone else when a mysterious villain starts recruiting people to his side by preying on their weaknesses, starting with Lector's mother.
1. Chapter 1

**Yu-Gi-Oh!**

**Stirring Up Ghosts**

**By Lucky_Ladybug**

**Notes: The characters from the show aren't mine. The other characters and the story are! Thanks to Azalea542 for help with the title! This takes place in my post-series **_**Pendulum Swings**_** verse, which redeems the Big Five. The opening scene is an expanded blurb I wrote for 31 Days' April 6th 2019 prompt, **_**You've got salvation you've got scars.**_

**Chapter One**

Lector took a deep breath as he unlocked and pushed open the door to the small house. He hadn't been here in so many years, and really hadn't ever planned to return at all after the falling-out with his family. But his mother had contacted him and told him that if he wanted anything in there, he should come get it out, as the family was planning a new use for the little cabin that was situated in a corner of the mansion's property. He had decided he did want to look and see what was there in case he wanted anything, so he had flown to New Orleans with his friends in tow as support. While they were there, he also planned to see Evangeline, of course. But he wanted to get this out of the way first.

"This is a cozy place," Crump commented as Lector switched on the lights, bathing the large living area in a glow. A dark green couch was positioned against a partition that went halfway up the wall, separating the main area from a computer nook. Several doors around the room presumably led to other rooms, including an odd door in the corner.

Lector nodded. "I always loved it here. I was allowed to use it for my own when I wanted to get away from the chaos and commotion in the mansion. As I grew older, I performed my first work here on that computer." He nodded to the old model.

"Does that fossil even still work?" Nesbitt grunted.

"Let's find out. If it still has copies of my old documents, I may want to take it with me, or at least get the files off of it." Lector walked over and pressed the button. The computer loaded, not seeming any the worse for wear despite the many years of inactivity.

"You don't suppose somebody's been using it since you were here, do you?" Crump wondered. "Like Marie or Evangeline?"

"It's possible," Lector said. "I wouldn't mind if they did."

Johnson wandered around the room and finally opened the corner door, confused and intrigued by the oddity. He was greeted by a closet with several small shelves of boxes. The one whose contents he could most clearly see looked like it contained children's drawings. He took down the top one and studied the image of a yard with blue sky and white clouds overhead. "Did you draw this?" he asked.

Lector glanced over. "Yes. . . ."

"Doesn't your mother want any of these things?" Johnson said in chagrin.

"I don't know if she even knows they're here," Lector said. "Nor do I know if she would care." He turned back to the computer and typed.

Gansley sighed sadly. He felt the woman would not, but he didn't want to voice that feeling. Instead he walked over to another door and opened it. It led to a short hall, with a door on each side.

Nesbitt wandered past him to explore. The door on the left opened into a bathroom. On the right was a bedroom. "This must have been paradise to a kid," he commented. He certainly would have loved a set-up like this, a place to escape to when solitude was desired.

"I spent many happy hours here," Lector said. He inserted a flash drive he had brought with him and proceeded to copy the files on the computer.

". . . So, what are you gonna do with all this stuff?" Crump wondered. He looked to the boxes in the closet. "Are you gonna take it?"

"Is there really any point?" Lector said. "If my mother doesn't want it, I don't know if I do either. It's just reminders of a different time, one that's long gone now. It's probably better to leave everything about it behind."

"Yeah, but . . . all of these things you made. . . ." Crump went to the closet now and took out more pictures from the box. "You can't ever get any of this back if it's just tossed. . . ."

"Just like my family's love," Lector grunted. He finished copying the files and ejected the flash drive.

Crump exchanged a sickened look with Gansley. He knew all too well what it was like to have a rotten family, but in Lector's case they had once been good. How much worse was it for him to lose them after knowing their love for so long?

"I'll tell you what, Crump," Lector said as he started to get up from the computer. "If you don't think I should leave these things behind to probably get thrown out, then you take them. Maybe someday I'll want them, maybe I won't, but at least they'll be with somebody who actually cares about them."

"Yeah?" Crump shuffled through the pictures and then put them back in the box. "You're on, Buddy." He lifted the box out of the closet. "Anytime you change your mind, you can come get them."

Lector nodded. He wasn't sure he ever would, but it actually did feel nice, to know that someone really was still interested.

"You wanna look around anymore?" Crump asked.

"You go ahead and load everything you want to take," Lector said. "Maybe I'll make sure we haven't overlooked anything." He headed for the hallway.

Gansley gave a quiet sigh. That might be what Lector was doing, or maybe he did want to say one last Goodbye to a place that had meant so much to him in his younger years. He stood by, silently watching as Lector wandered about, opening the doors and entering every room.

Nesbitt went over to him. "Should any of us go find him or . . . ?" He sounded and looked awkward. He still tried to figure out how to fully behave as he should. Having grown up around machines while deliberately avoiding people had left him very unskilled with social situations and sometimes with common thoughtfulness. But the others were understanding and tried to help him when needed.

"I believe he might want to be alone right now," Gansley said. "This is most likely the last time he will ever see this place."

Nesbitt nodded and folded his arms to wait.

"Of course, if he doesn't return soon, then I see nothing wrong with one of us checking on him," Gansley continued.

"I sure will," Crump said. He was still pawing through the boxes and other contents of the closet. After a moment he paused and looked over at his friends. ". . . Hey, Nesbitt?"

Nesbitt grunted. "What."

"I know you've always said that you pushed people away and you were a loner because you wanted to be, but . . . was that really true?" Crump asked.

Nesbitt averted his gaze. Finally he sighed and lowered his arms. "It's true. . . . Just not the whole truth. I was never interested in socializing with anybody until I met Lector that time on vacation with my parents. When we got home, I went back to being unsociable again, although I met a kid in a playgroup I liked who might have been Johnson.

"Then I got old enough to attend public school. I was content to play at building things and liked any time when I could do that. In kindergarten they'd have specific times where kids could play at different activities around the room, you know?"

"Yeah, I remember that," Crump said.

"Sometimes I kind of hoped some of the other kids would be interested in what I was doing and want to play with me, like Lector did," Nesbitt said. "But they either ignored me or picked on me. Sometimes they'd take what I was building away from me and tear it apart to build what they wanted instead."

"That's awful!" Crump exclaimed. "And the teacher just let them?!"

"Eh." Nesbitt shrugged. "Sometimes she didn't know. But other times she definitely did; she outright told my parents at a PTA meeting that she didn't blame the other kids for ganging up on me when I just wasn't normal."

"Are you serious?!" Crump was booming now. "She should've been fired!"

"I agree," Gansley said, his voice dark. "If that had happened to my children—or grandchildren—I would have used all my power and influence to have that teacher removed from her position."

"And I would have helped you," Johnson said.

"I don't know if she ever was fired," Nesbitt said. "But I soon realized that kids could be cruel and selfish. Maybe it was their parents' fault. I don't know. I just knew I didn't want anything to do with them, so yes, I started actively pushing them away and keeping to myself."

Lector came back to the living room, his eyes filled with sorrow. "I am so sorry, my dear friend," he said quietly. "I had no idea."

"None of us did," Crump said.

Nesbitt sighed, looking a little embarrassed. "I said I'd had a relatively happy and normal childhood until I hit puberty. I meant it. I guess I thought almost all kids were either the victims of bullying or were bullies themselves. . . . And that only a select few were too rich and important to be bullied or bother with being bullies. In any case, I didn't have it as bad as some others did. I suppose I thought it wasn't any big deal. I _was_ happy . . . when I wasn't at school."

"Any bullying's a big deal," Crump said. He sighed. "We should know, in more ways than one. . . . A lot of us sure bullied the kids in Noa's world."

No one could disagree with that.

"My childhood actually was normal and happy," Lector said. "I knew nothing of such problems until I left New Orleans and went to Domino City to work. Then I saw that bullying doesn't stop when the bullies grow up. And I grew more and more outraged whenever I saw it."

"But you weren't a victim of it then. You were betrayed by your own family, whereas it was always only strangers and classmates who tortured me." Nesbitt frowned. "What happened to me can't compare. As messed-up as my parents are, I can't think they would ever set me up to die or not care if I was hurt."

"Everyone has their own sorrow," Lector said. "Who's to say whose is really worse?" He shook his head. "I don't even know anymore. I used to think I had all the answers, but ever since we started trying to turn our lives around I've realized more and more that I don't."

"You've become more humble than you were, perhaps," Gansley said. "Maybe we all have."

"Even you, Nesbitt," Johnson said.

"Well, in any case, this trip isn't about me," Nesbitt said uncomfortably. "We came here for Lector."

"And I am so grateful," Lector said. "I would hate to be here alone when it's no longer happy like it was. But now I'm ready to leave."

"Did you really stay all that you wanted?" Nesbitt asked. "You came out because you heard what I was saying."

"I looked over the rooms . . . remembered them a bit . . . but yes, I would rather go," Lector said. He didn't say more, but he really felt too sad to keep staying. He wanted to hurry on along and get to Evangeline.

"I think we've got everything," Crump said. He and Johnson had started to lifted the last items out of the closet.

Lector smiled a bit. "Alright then."

The group headed for the door and stepped out into the New Orleans evening. Lector cast one final look inside the little home before shutting the door for good.

"What do they want to use it for now?" Nesbitt wondered.

"I never thought to ask," Lector realized. "Maybe Marie wants to use it as I did."

"I hope she'll enjoy it like you did," Crump said.

Lector didn't respond, but he really hoped so too.

"You could build something like this on your property," Johnson said.

"I have an entire mansion to myself now," Lector mused. "I'd have no need of it."

"That's true," Johnson conceded.

"And perhaps it would bring back too many bittersweet memories to build another one," Gansley said.

Lector nodded. That was pretty much how he felt. "I'll just leave it in the past," he said. "Right now, I want to focus on the present."

No one objected to that.

Mrs. Leichter met them as they reached the front walkway. "Did you find anything, Démas?" she asked.

"I didn't want much, Mother, but Crump decided to take a lot of it just in case I change my mind someday," Lector said.

"It's stuff you should want," Crump said to her. "Pictures and things he made when he was a kid!"

"Oh. . . ." The woman's eyes flickered, and there was a certain regret and longing within them, but then she looked away. "You go ahead and take them then. I haven't been much of a mother to him for quite some time. You've been a more loyal family than most of us have been."

Crump frowned, peering at her. "Are you sure?"

"Yes," she said, her voice taut. "I could have got them out many times before and I didn't."

Lector sighed. "Alright then. Goodbye, Mother."

"Goodbye, Démas." She still wouldn't face him.

Gansley was deep in thought as they reached the rental car. Finally he looked to Crump. "Would you mind . . . ?" He took several of the pictures out of the top box and looked towards Mrs. Leichter.

Crump blinked and shrugged. "If you really think she'll take them and not toss them. . . ."

"I don't think she'll throw them out." Gansley walked back to the porch and held them out. "Why don't you look at these for a while?" he said gruffly. "If you have any parental instincts left, these might bring them out."

Slowly she turned back. ". . . Thank you," she said, her voice cracking as she accepted them and started to look through them.

Lector especially was stunned. He looked to Gansley with disbelieving eyes when he walked back to them. "She wants them?"

"I'm hoping looking at them will make her want _you,_" Gansley said. "There's still some caring there; that's obvious."

Lector slowly nodded. "Thank you," he said quietly. "For trying like this."

"You deserve to have your family back," Gansley said, "although they're not deserving of you." He drew an arm around Lector's shoulders as they all got in the car to drive away.

xxxx

Amélie Leichter slowly walked back into the house, trying to ignore the lump in her throat. She had wanted to see Démas, but then when she did, as usual she didn't even know what to say. It felt like the gulf between them was insurmountable. Of course, that wasn't her son's fault. He longed with all his heart for a reconciliation, but it never happened.

Why did she allow things to be this way? Evangeline had asked, and Démas had asked too—with his eyes if not with his voice—but she never had any real answers. The mess was too large; there was no way to fix all that her husband had set in motion.

She gazed back at the drawings Gansley had given her. Her boy had been so young when he had made these. . . . So young and innocent, not driven by anger and rage and a desire for vengeance.

Although . . .

Hadn't she taught him that part of their lot was to punish those deserving? Not all practitioners of _vodun_ believed that, but she had. He hadn't ever shown interest in participating in that part of their heritage, but he had definitely carried a vengeful, justice-driven streak to his personality. His main reason for going after Seto Kaiba had been to make him understand the wrongs he had committed. That actually wasn't wrong, as far as she was concerned. But his methods had ended up leaving a lot to be desired.

"Did I drive him to that?" she whispered. "Was it really my fault that Gerard turned against him and betrayed him to Dr. Raven?"

She sank into the couch, trembling now as she continued to hold the drawings. She had never thought of this before, but why hadn't she? Had she just been blind?

Her husband Gerard was in prison for what he had done to their son. And the children . . . their feelings were so confused and mixed. Aside from Evangeline, they wanted to be loyal to their father, even if they didn't like what he had done to Démas. She had no doubt furthered those feelings by her own bewilderment and indecision. She had always objected to Gerard's plans, yet she had not seriously tried to stop him. Had she felt she couldn't? Shouldn't? Or had she really hoped that in the end he would know he couldn't go through with it?

She set the drawings on the coffee table in front of her. "What's wrong with me?!" she wailed. "How could I have let him do that to our son? And how could I have continued to treat Démas so horribly afterwards?!"

She had been so confused she hadn't known how to behave or react. Her life had been falling apart around her and she had done what she had thought would save it. But now . . . now that it was too late, it was as if she was waking up to a full realization of her actions. She had chosen her husband over her son. There was no other way to put it. And now she had lost not only Démas, but Evangeline too. Démas might forgive her, somehow, incredibly, but she doubted Evangeline would. The girl had idolized her father and adored her mother, and they had both let her down when they had abandoned Démas. Now she was reacting with anger and hatred while Démas was shattered and crushed. Amélie's attempt to salvage her family had only splintered it even more.

"I should have denounced Gerard and rallied all the children to Démas's aid," she knew now. "But it's too late . . . too late. . . ."

It felt like the darkness of her realization was creeping over her, covering every part of her and blocking out the light. Then, as the light faded completely, there was a voice in her head—not her own, but someone else's.

"_It's hard to accept what you've done, isn't it?"_

She froze. "Who's there?!"

"_What if I could give you the power to reunite your family? Would you do a simple task for me in turn?"_

"Of course," she said. "I'll do anything!"

"_I was sure I could count on you, Amélie Leichter."_

The voice faded, but it had left her with an incredible sensation of power and control. Now she knew she could fix all her wrongs.

She ran a hand over the crayon picture. "My sweet boy. . . . Everything will be alright," she whispered. "Everything. . . ."

xxxx

Evangeline beamed as she flung open the doors of her plantation home and ran into her older brother's arms. "Démas! Oh Démas . . . it's so good to see you again!" She hugged him close.

Lector smiled. Here was the one family member who would never turn against him. "Hello, Evangeline. How have you been?"

"Alright." She looked up at him. "The ghosts in the hotel really have settled down thanks to the advice we were given. It's amazing! And such a relief. I wondered if I really would have to shut it down!"

"What about the ghosts here?" Crump exclaimed.

She sighed. "Well, the North wing is still off-limits. And the restless ghost still walks up and down the halls many nights. But now that that horrible Gozaburo character is gone, there isn't any feeling of evil. It just feels . . . creepy."

". . . I guess that's an improvement," Crump said.

"Well, come on in!" Evangeline linked arms with Lector and started towards the porch. "Everybody else is waiting inside. I'm so glad you all came out for a visit! It sounds like things have been horrible in Domino City lately!"

"Things are almost always horrible," Nesbitt grunted. "We rarely ever get a break." He doubted they would here, either. Lector had already been crushed again by his mother's wishy-washy attitude.

Evangeline sighed. "I know. . . ." She bit her lip. "What was it you needed to see about before you came here, Démas?"

Lector hesitated. He hadn't wanted to tell her, knowing she would become understandably incensed. ". . . I was collecting my belongings out of the little house on the family property," he said at last. That was true; he just wasn't saying why he had done it.

"Oh. Mother said how much you loved it there." Evangeline smiled sadly. "Sometimes I went in there just to feel close to you. I could understand why you loved it."

"Yes. . . ." Lector tried to shake himself out of his sorrow. He didn't want to show it to her. "Is Angelique back from the restaurant yet?"

"She will be soon," Evangeline said. "She's bringing dinner. How long can all of you stay?"

"Not long," Gansley said. "Now that Penguin World is open, we need to be on hand much of the time."

"Oh, that's true," Evangeline mused.

"And the kids have school," Crump added.

"We'll probably just be here for the weekend," Lector said.

"Well, we'll make it a good weekend," Evangeline promised.

They went inside. Mokuba looked up, happy to see Lector back but concerned for him, knowing how much the task had likely hurt him. "Hi, Lector," he greeted.

Lector smiled. "Hello, Mokuba."

"So what's the deal?" Joey asked. "How'd it go?"

"It went about as well as I could have expected," Lector said with a vague nod towards the boxes they were bringing with them.

Evangeline caught sight of a drawing in the box Crump was holding. "You drew this, Démas?" She reached in and pulled it out.

"That's right." Lector smiled a bit. "All the drawings in there are mine."

Yugi stared at it in stunned surprise. "But . . . you were a kid when you drew that, weren't you?!"

"Yes. . . ." Lector quirked an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Well . . ." Yugi got up and pointed at a strange, dark creature hovering in the top half of the picture. "That looks a lot like a Berserk Dragon!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

Lector and Evangeline both looked to the childhood picture in shock.

"Why, Yugi's right," Evangeline said in amazement. "You got the dark teeth, and the claws, and the horns, and even the whitish mane! You were so talented, Démas!"

"That isn't what Yugi meant," Lector said. "The card game didn't even exist when I was growing up. How in the world did I know to draw a Berserk Dragon?!"

Crump was looking at the back of the picture. "Somebody wrote something here," he announced. "'Démas drew his imaginary friend.' And there's quotation marks around _imaginary_."

"That makes it sound like whoever wrote that knew it wasn't imaginary," Johnson remarked.

"Okay, that's just weird," Téa frowned.

"It's also kind of weird that when I got corrupted by Dr. Raven's amulet, I immediately opened a portal and a Berserk Dragon came out," Evangeline said. "I don't remember specifically trying to summon that monster, so why did it come?"

"In the game, you can't even get Berserk Dragon without that annoying Deal with Dark Ruler Trap card," Joey frowned. "So I mean, it's pretty rare."

"That's in the game, though," Yugi said. "What about real-life?"

Evangeline paused, looking thoughtful. "You don't suppose . . ." She turned to Lector. "What if Berserk Dragon has always kind of been in the family?"

"You mean like how Blue-Eyes White Dragon is so special to our family?" Mokuba chirped.

Seto grunted. He still didn't like accepting that he was related to the priest who had served Atem . . . although he did have to admit it was a marked improvement over Ishizu and Yami Bakura thinking he actually was that priest re-born.

"Yeah," Evangeline said. "Something like that." She smiled. "It's a nice thought anyway."

"I don't know how we'd go about finding out," Lector said. "It was our mother who wrote this caption on my drawing, but I hardly feel like asking her about it."

Evangeline made a face. "Father probably forbade her from telling you if Berserk Dragon was real, so she had to pretend he was imaginary instead," she said.

". . . Although she didn't seem to recognize Berserk Dragon when you summoned it," Lector remembered. "She was highly upset on the phone talking about you riding off on some creature."

"Are you sure your mother wrote the caption?" Gansley asked. "Perhaps it was your grandmother or your great-grandmother, if their handwriting was similar."

Lector looked at it again. ". . . I suppose it could have been Grandmother," he conceded. "Before her mind went, putting those quotation marks around _imaginary_ sounds like something she would have done."

"We should visit her while you're here, Démas," Evangeline said. "Maybe we can ask her about Berserk Dragon too."

"We'll see," Lector said, not sure that asking about the dragon would be a good idea.

"Maybe there's even some old journals or something around here that'd talk about it," Joey suggested.

"It's worth a try," Yugi smiled.

"I think we've been through all the journals and logs and letters in this house," Evangeline said. "But you're right; it wouldn't hurt to look some more."

The front door opened and Angelique came in with several bags filled with take-out from her family's restaurant. "Hello, everyone," she greeted them with a smile. "I hope I brought enough for all of you!"

"Ohhh man, somethin' smells good!" Joey exclaimed.

"Hi, Angelique," Yugi smiled. "It's great to see you again."

"Let's just hope we can have a nice, quiet visit this time," Angelique said. "I'd love to see all of you when there aren't horrible things happening to us."

"Wouldn't we all," Tristan sighed.

The group had a nice, quiet dinner, at least, discussing happier things for the most part. Crump talked a lot about Penguin World and the penguins that inhabited it. Everyone was amused by the tales of George and Sammy.

"Sometime we're going to have to visit you and see these cute penguins for ourselves," Evangeline smiled.

"That'd be great," Téa said. "We'd love to show you Domino City!"

"How's it been running your businesses out here?" Crump wondered. "Everything going okay?"

"Things have been pretty quiet with Dr. Raven in prison," Angelique said. "Thankfully."

Evangeline nodded. "And with the ghosts at the hotel behaving, there haven't been any problems there either. The stock prices for our family business have finally been rising again, Démas!" She looked to Lector, unable to hide the pride in her eyes.

Lector smiled. "I'm so proud of you, Evangeline. You're correcting everything our father ruined."

Evangeline's eyes flickered. "Well . . . I do what I can," she said softly, "but I can't fix how the family feels about you. And I'm not sure I can ever see any of them in the same light or even forgive them for what they've done to you."

"And I can't blame you," Lector sighed. "Normally I'd be feeling that hateful too. I don't know why I haven't."

"Maybe it was just one blow too many," Bakura said softly. "After a while, if you get beat down too much, it just becomes too impossible to stand and the fight goes out of you."

"I have definitely never been crushed as thoroughly and as completely as I was then," Lector said quietly. "It hurt desperately when I was shunned by the family before, but I still never once dreamed that Father would betray me to Dr. Raven or anyone else to save the rest of the family."

"Who would?!" Crump exclaimed. "Nobody does stuff like that!"

"I really wonder what the history is between the families," Angelique said. "I'm ashamed that Dr. Raven is even related to me!"

"Well, the important thing is that we're putting all that rivalry nonsense behind us and forging a new future as friends," Evangeline said. "Our families will be united from now on, starting with this generation!"

"But it might not be a bad idea to find out what happened in the past," Atem said. "Just in case Dr. Raven has other relatives out there who might try to cause trouble for you."

"The only other relative is Marcel Germaine," Evangeline protested, "and he's on our side!"

"Let's hope he's the only one," Atem said.

Worry flickered in Angelique's eyes. Now she would be wondering what the truth was for sure. She hadn't known about Marcel Germaine until recently. What if there _were_ others?

". . . Well," Evangeline said, deciding a new subject was in order, "you'll all need to pick rooms again and decide how you want to pair up. . . ."

"Somebody'll still be out in the cold again," Crump said in concern.

"Eh. I'll bunk alone," Gansley said. "Without Gozaburo around, I doubt there will be anything worse than a possibly voyeuristic ghost, and I highly doubt it will have much fun watching an old man sleep."

"Are you serious?!" Joey exclaimed. "I'd never bunk alone in a ghost-infested place!"

Nesbitt grunted. "After Vivian Wong, even the thought of a voyeuristic ghost is too much."

"I don't really have a great deal of choice in the matter," Gansley said.

"At least there hasn't been as much trouble like that since we hired some servants," Evangeline said with a weak smile. "There's a maid, a gardener, and a butler. Maybe having servants around makes the ghosts feel like things are more the way they're supposed to be and they don't feel restless enough to come out as much."

"In any case, we left the cot down, just as it was before," Angelique said, "so technically three people could go in one room."

"I don't mind using the cot," Crump said.

Gansley looked at him and finally shook his head with a fond smile. "Heh. Well, if it will put your mind at ease, Crump. But I'm sure there's not any more danger and I'm not afraid of the ghost that silently watches."

"I sure think it's freaky!" Crump declared. "Why the heck would the ghost get a kick out of that?!"

"I would rather not know," Lector said emphatically.

After dinner everyone separated to scope out their various rooms and ponder on what to do next. Evangeline had told them they were all free to wander around the house as much as they wanted, but most didn't really care to do so.

Nesbitt wasn't sure what to think either way. He sank down on the edge of one of the beds and looked away, staring off at the window. "The last time we were in this house, I spent a lot of the time not knowing who you are," he said. Though his voice was gruff, the regret and sorrow in it was obvious.

"That was through no fault of your own," Lector told him.

"I know," Nesbitt growled. "It's just that being here again digs up all those painful memories. I wanted to put them behind us."

"We'll never forget them entirely," Lector said. "Nor would I want to. What Gozaburo did was extremely horrendous and unforgivable. But . . . it also showed just how much you care about me. You couldn't really forget me even with that strong spell trying to force you to. I would never want to forget about that."

Nesbitt sighed. Lector did have a point, he had to admit. If it came right down to it, he wouldn't want to forget that either.

". . . I wonder if there is any truth to what they were saying about Berserk Dragon," he said instead.

"I don't know," Lector said. "I was so young when I drew that picture that now I don't remember if I drew it because I saw the real dragon."

"Even if Berserk Dragon has always kind of been your family's dragon, why?" Nesbitt frowned. "I mean, why it as opposed to some other Duel Monster?"

"I can't imagine," Lector said. "As an adult, my reason for liking it is because of its power and usefulness. If I were to go on design alone, it's actually rather unsettling. The original name Pegasus came up with for it was Berserk Dead Dragon. He got away with that in Japan, but I guess parents here in America thought that was too demented and he had to change it."

Nesbitt stared at him. "So it's a zombie or something?"

". . . I suppose that fits for a family that practiced _vodun_, doesn't it," Lector said with a wry smirk of realization.

Nesbitt grunted and laid back on the bed. "Maybe you really do need to find out more about your family's past," he said. "Your father can't have locked everything up altogether."

"Maybe I need to talk to Mr. Devlin's friend Snakes Tolliver some more," Lector said. "He knows about my ancestors, and they may have told him some things about even further back in the family line."

"That sounds logical to me. Why don't you get his number from Duke?" Nesbitt sat up again.

"Maybe I will." Lector headed to the door. Just as he opened it, Crump was raising his hand to knock from the other side.

"Hey," Crump greeted him. "I was just going through your pictures and stuff and I found these that I thought you and Nesbitt would both like to have."

Surprised, Lector took and leafed through them. Nesbitt got off the bed to come look as well.

". . . It's pictures I drew of us," Lector said in amazement. Indeed, the drawings depicted a child Lector and his friend Robbie in various situations around the city—playing in the hotel, exploring a cemetery, watching a Mardi Gras parade. . . .

"It really made an impact on you when you met Nesbitt back then," Crump said.

"It sure did," Lector said. He had to smile.

"I wish we could have stayed in touch," Nesbitt grunted. But he also gave a smile—gruff but sincere—as he studied the drawings. The child Lector had taken great care with each one, despite his tender age. He had clearly thought a lot about all the locations and scenarios.

"Why the heck did you draw a cemetery?!" Crump exclaimed.

"I honestly don't know," Lector said. "Maybe because the family cemetery seemed so fascinating to a young child and a good place to explore. I was too young to really understand what it was for."

"I guess!" Crump snorted. "So are you guys planning to explore the house and see what kinda secrets we haven't found yet?"

Lector looked to Nesbitt, who shrugged. "I don't know," he admitted. "I suppose it might be a good thing to do, but I'm not sure where to look."

"Probably the attic or the basement for starters," Crump said. "I dunno if I'd have the courage to check them out, though. Especially the attic, after the trouble we had last time! Was it really just Gozaburo who made everything go skewampus and caused us to feel like the whole floor plan on the third floor changed?!"

"One would hope the ghosts who live here didn't cause such a thing," Lector said. "I almost feel like going up and making sure it doesn't happen, to try to gauge whether Evangeline is really safe here."

Crump sighed. "Makes sense to me. If you wanna do it, Pal, I'll come with ya."

"And I won't be staying behind," Nesbitt grunted.

"I'm sure Gansley and Johnson will come too," Crump said. "Probably everybody would! You'd figure there might be safety in numbers."

"Hopefully," Lector said. "I'd hate for all of us to get caught up in a changing floor plan illusion."

"That's true," Nesbitt said. "Some people should stay behind in case they need to get us out of it."

"Good point," Crump shivered.

Soon some of the group was heading upstairs, while the others decided to try the basement. The first group paused at the third floor, studying its quietly unnatural feeling. There was definitely something there that didn't care to identify itself.

"I don't know how Evangeline stayed up here long enough to fix anything," Téa said with a shiver. "It feels so freaky."

"It's plenty weird enough even without Gozaburo!" Joey chimed in. He was shaking all over.

"Evangeline is very stubborn," Lector said. "She told me she straightened all the rooms, including the one we used to play in as children. She hasn't let Gabriel play here unattended, though; whatever is here seems to especially like the play room."

"Go figure," Crump gulped.

"It's not dangerous, but she figures it would be too traumatizing for a child to sense something watching him," Lector said. "The feeling is always stronger when someone's alone."

"It's traumatizing enough right now!" Joey exclaimed. "No way would I ever come up here alone!"

Most everyone else concurred, really—even if they wouldn't say so aloud. They quickly went up the rest of the stairs to the attic.

"Well, this place looks about the same as it did when we were here last," Crump said, surveying the stacks of boxes and furniture in every direction and corner of the huge space.

"This is pretty cool," Mokuba breathed.

"So we just open box after box until we find something dealin' with Lector's family's past?" Joey blinked.

Johnson squeezed between a long table and several more stacks of boxes. "That's good enough to start with, Joseph."

"And we havta deal with knowin' that ghost is watching us the whole time!" Joey whimpered. "I can feel it!"

"Then don't wander off," Tristan retorted.

For a while they opened boxes with contents ranging from antique toys to old silverware and knick-knacks. All the while, the feeling of them being observed by the mysterious ghost persisted and even grew stronger.

"You know, as long as you're here, you could do something constructive and help us find what we want," Gansley commented to it after a while.

"Don't talk to it!" Joey exclaimed in horror.

"Hey. . . ." Téa dug deeper into the knick-knack box. "Here's something . . . maybe?" She held up a small oval object. "I'm not sure if this is a brooch or a pendant, but it's got a Berserk Dragon on it!"

"It's beautiful," Ishizu said in some surprise.

Lector quickly came over and took it. "I wonder if it's hand-crafted. . . ." He turned it over. "I don't see any manufacturer's name or a date when it was made. . . ."

"It looks quite old," Atem said. "Maybe it's from the era Snakes would remember."

"I got his number from Mr. Devlin," Lector said. "Maybe I should call him now."

"Let's look some more first." Nesbitt pawed through the box he had started on. "What the . . . . what's this?" He took out a leather-bound booklet held together by a tied string along the binding. When he opened it, the yellowed and crackly pages turned and fell open to a specific section. "This thing looks like it might disintegrate on the spot. And I can't read the language it's in, but it looks handwritten."

Lector came over to look. "It's Haitian Creole," he said in surprise.

"Can you read it?" Nesbitt asked.

"Not very well," Lector replied. "It's French-based, but it's not like standard French. Mother wanted to teach me, but Father forbade it, since he knew she only wanted to teach me in connection with _vodun_. I wouldn't be surprised if Evangeline has started to learn the language, though. And in all honesty, this looks like it could be a book of spells."

"_What?!"_ Joey shrieked.

"Is that really that big of a surprise?" Tristan sighed. "We know Lector's family was into that kind of thing."

Lector turned a page and then froze. An inked drawing of a Berserk Dragon appeared at the top of the next page, followed by a text that went on for the length on it.

"Seriously?!" Crump exclaimed as he looked over.

"What is this?" Nesbitt stared at the page.

"I'm guessing it's not poetry about Berserk Dragon," Tristan sighed.

"No. . . . It looks more like it could be a spell to open a dimensional portal and call it forth," Lector said in disbelief.

"Well, so now we know your family really does have some weird connection with it," Tristan said. "Although we still don't know why."

"That's kind of neat, though," Mokuba spoke up. "It's a really good clue!"

"It is," Lector agreed, as Nesbitt handed him the book.

"So, what now?" Joey wondered. "Should we go downstairs and show this to Evangeline?"

"Yes, let's." Lector started for the door. "We can come back and search more later, but this is an important clue right now."

Joey was all too happy to chase after him.

"Should we remind Joey there are ghosts in the basement too?" Marik whispered to Mokuba.

"Let's not," Mokuba whispered back.

xxxx

Evangeline had led her group deep into the basement, but aside from the feeling that they were being watched, they weren't having a very productive experience.

"What's with the kid-sized door?" Duke wondered, looking to a wall with a half-size door.

"It leads into a child's room," Evangeline said. "I loved going in there when I was little. There's stuffed animals and books and all kinds of lovely things."

"But didn't it belong to someone specific?" Serenity wondered.

"I'm sure it did, but I've never known who," Evangeline said. "It's always been empty when I've seen it. And the ghosts we're sensing down here won't go in there. I'm not sure why."

"A haven from the ghosts?" David mused. "That's nice in a way . . . although it does make you wonder why. Not to mention it might be kind of unsettling to know the ghosts are hovering right outside the room."

"No kidding," Duke grunted, twirling a piece of hair around his finger.

"Something seems rather sad about it, in a way," Bakura remarked. "I hope the child who originally had the room didn't die young. . . ."

Yami Bakura grunted. Bakura was still hurting about having lost the chance to restore his mother and sister with the life-giving Chinese tiara they had recently encountered. He had sat up with the boy on quite a few subsequent nights, letting him talk and offering advice and commentary. Bakura was trying to be strong, but it was obvious to the old thief that his descendant's heart was broken. He wished he really knew something he could do, but there was nothing.

"He probably just grew up and left," Duke said.

"Or she," Mai countered.

Evangeline's phone rang and she pulled it out in surprise. "It's Phillipe," she announced with disgust. "I can't imagine why he would call. . . ." She quickly answered. "Hello, Phillipe. . . ."

The angry and bewildered voice on the other end of the line spoke so loudly that everyone with Evangeline could hear. "What did you do to Mom?"

Evangeline's eyes narrowed. "What makes you think I did anything to our dear mother?" she shot back. "I haven't even seen her in months!"

Serenity looked away. She certainly understood why, and couldn't blame her friend in the slightest, but it was still sad to her that the family was in such a state.

"Our _dear_ mother came over here babbling about how horrible we've all been to Démas, including her," Phillipe said. "She's been on Father's side. We all know that. She never would have started acting differently unless someone got to her, and who would that be except you or Démas?"

Evangeline's lip curled. "Or just maybe her conscience finally started bothering her?" she countered. "Good for her! Although it's too little, too late, as far as I'm concerned."

"No, it's not good," Phillipe insisted. "She's not in a normal state of mind! She's saying now that if Michel and I won't agree peaceably to reconcile with Démas, she's going to cast a spell to mesmerize us into it! You know that would only hurt Démas even more because it wouldn't be real!" He held out the phone. "You hear that? She's chanting right now!"

Evangeline stiffened. ". . . Alright, Phillipe," she said. "You've convinced me something is wrong. I'll come out. Try to hold her off." She hung up.

"Okay, now that is bizarre," David frowned.

Angelique was staring. "What do you think could have happened?!"

"I don't know," Evangeline frowned. "Nothing good. Either Mother really has cracked up . . . or someone's put a spell on her. Either way, I'm going out there to see her. I don't want Démas to know about this until I get back, alright? It might make him too sad thinking Mother really wants to make things right with him when she probably doesn't."

"You're not going alone," Serenity insisted.

"I'll have to agree," Mai said. "You don't know what you'll find there, Hon."

Duke nodded. "We're all coming with you."

"Well, then I guess none of us will be here to tell Lector about it," David mused.

"Let's just hope we make it back at all," Duke retorted. With them, there was never a dull moment, and especially when they were in such a hotbed of the supernatural, he could easily imagine that something might go wrong.

No one could counter Duke's comment.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

Evangeline's hopes of getting out without Lector knowing were quickly decimated on the stairs. Lector nearly collided with her as he led his group down. "Evangeline!" he exclaimed in surprise.

"Oh . . . Démas. . . ." Evangeline swallowed hard. "Did . . . did you find anything?"

"Yes, actually," Lector said. "Let's go back upstairs and I'll show you."

Soon both groups were on level ground and Lector was holding out the leather book. Evangeline took it in amazement. "This is an incredible find," she gasped.

"There's a page about Berserk Dragon," Lector said. "Can you translate it?"

Evangeline looked it over. "Basically, it's a chant to bring it out of the dominion of the beasts and give aid to the family it's bound to," she said.

"Weird," Joey said. "Why would it be bound to the family?"

"I guess we still have more mysteries to solve." Evangeline closed the book. "I would love to look this over more, but I'm afraid right now I need to go see about something." She heaved a sigh. There would be no way to leave now without Lector finding out what was happening. ". . . Phillipe just called. Mother's gone berserk and is trying to mesmerize Phillipe and Michel into wanting to reconcile with you, Démas. . . . I'm so sorry. . . ." She looked up at her thunderstruck brother. "I didn't want you to know. . . ."

"Why on Earth would Mother act like that?!" Lector exclaimed, finally finding his voice.

Crump looked nervously to Gansley. "You don't think seein' those pictures really set her off that bad, do you?"

"No, I wouldn't think so," Gansley frowned. "Something else must have happened after we left."

"Well, let's get over there!" Lector cried, running to the door.

Nesbitt growled. "How is Lector ever going to even try to heal when every time we come here, the wounds get torn open again?!" He chased after his best friend.

From Yugi's eyes, he sadly wondered the same thing.

"What do you think could have happened?" he asked Atem as they all hurried after the others to the door.

"I don't know, Yugi," Atem frowned. "It could be that her guilt finally took her over. Or . . . it could be a new enemy brainwashing or controlling her."

"That's what I'm afraid of," Yugi moaned.

xxxx

The ride to Michel and Phillipe's house was tense and probably too fast. When they arrived, Lector was the first out of the rental car and up to the porch. "Mother?!" he called.

The front door was standing open, but there was no sign of Mrs. Leichter in the living room beyond. At the top of the stairs, the bedroom doors opened and Michel and Phillipe cautiously emerged.

"Has she really gone?" Michel hoped.

"We ran up here so we wouldn't hear her spell and fall under it," Phillipe said. "A verbal spell like that has to be cast in the person's presence _and_ they have to hear it for it to take effect."

Nesbitt mentally filed that information away in case they would need it later. "Why didn't she just chase you?" he grunted as he came up behind Lector.

"Why is she acting like this at all?" Phillipe retorted.

Nesbitt growled. "I have a better question. Why don't you want to reconcile with Lector in your right minds?!"

Lector clenched a fist. "I must admit I would like to know that myself," he said. "I don't understand why all of you sided with Father despite not even liking the extremes he was going to about me! Are all of you really that old-fashioned and heartless, that the father is right no matter what?! Even he admitted he treated me poorly, when he was convicted! But then I suppose if you really believed he was right, you would have changed your tunes and cared about me again once he admitted that!"

Gansley came up now as well, and laid a hand on Lector's shoulder. Lector didn't hate his family even after all they had done to him, but he had confessed in the past that he was angry to be treated like this. This latest heartbreak and shock was finally snapping his patience and resignation.

Nesbitt took a step forward. "He's right," he said. "So it wasn't about your father at all! You probably just used that as an excuse to turn against Lector when you'd really wanted to anyway!"

Lector flinched. He had started to wonder that himself, but it hurt even more to hear those thoughts given voice.

"This really isn't the time," Michel protested. "We need to figure out what happened to Mother!"

Phillipe waved a silencing hand at him. "We'll figure that out," he insisted. "If Démas wants to know the truth, maybe it's time to tell him." He looked to Lector with narrowed eyes. "Everybody felt differently. Adele and Michel, they're just sheep, following Father, Mother, whoever. Mother still didn't treat you differently after Father's conviction, so they didn't either. But I, on the other hand . . ." His eyes narrowed. "Your friend is right is about me."

Lector just stared at him. "Why?!"

"That's so mean!" Téa cried. "How could you?!"

"Father liked you best, Démas," Phillipe said. "Maybe because you were the youngest boy. I don't know. He wanted you to take over the family business! But you couldn't wait to get out of New Orleans and go off somewhere else to find work. You were just bound and determined to go to Domino City because you believed what you had to find was there!"

"I told Father I had to go," Lector said. He was shaking now, clenching his fists tightly to try to keep himself from screaming. "I told him that he should make you the heir! You were the one who wanted it the most!"

"But he wouldn't give it to me," Phillipe spat. "He just insisted on waiting for you to come to your senses and come home! Then when you were right in the middle of all the KaibaCorp scandals, he finally wised up and turned against you. And I relished that! Yes, I could finally display my feelings towards you openly because Father no longer cared about you!"

"_Shut up!"_ Nesbitt lunged before anyone could stop him, delivering a vicious punch to Phillipe's nose. The other man fell back as blood spurted everywhere.

"You're an awful brother!" Mokuba wailed. "You don't even have the right to be Lector's brother! A real brother would never act like this!"

Seto narrowed his eyes. He had to admit he agreed. He was thoroughly repulsed.

"It's not like I wanted to be," Phillipe muttered.

"You're horrible!" Evangeline screamed. "But I'm glad Mother didn't succeed in putting you under her stupid spell! That would have been too cruel for words when the spell broke later!" She spun around. "Let's go! She's probably going to Adele's house now. Maybe we can head her off and get to the bottom of this!"

Everyone quickly realized the wisdom in those words and most started to turn to leave. Lector, however, kept standing where he was, watching as Michel tried to aid Phillipe with his bloody nose.

"I am sorry you felt this way, Phillipe," he said through clenched teeth. "I never wanted to hurt you, or Father, or any of the family, but somehow I've been painted as the villain trying to break us all up. I'm tired of it. If you don't care about me or like me, then fine! That's your choice. But stop blaming me for every little thing that's gone wrong! Start recognizing that maybe some of the blame is yours, or Father's, or Dr. Raven's! It's _not_ all me!" He turned and stormed out, slamming the front door behind him hard enough that the entire house shook.

"Oh Buddy. . . ." Crump went back to Lector, who was seething as he stomped down the stairs. "I'd give him worse than a bloody nose if I went back in there. Nesbitt let him off too easy."

"Oh, what good would that do?!" Lector raised a shaking hand to his forehead. "It'd just make him hate me even more!"

Suddenly the anger passed. He looked at his friend with new devastation in his eyes. "He really hates me," he whispered. "My brother hates me. . . ."

"He's not your brother," Crump said gruffly. He pulled Lector close in a hug. "I am. And Nesbitt, and Johnson, and Gansley too . . . even though he's also your real dad."

"Crump. . . ." Lector choked, clutching the older man in grief and despair as he couldn't refrain from a sob.

"It's gonna be okay," Crump soothed. "I promise! Somehow it's gonna be okay."

"I don't know how," Lector rasped. "Maybe Evangeline's right that it's too little, too late with our mother. And yet if I'm trying to be a decent person and I've been forgiven for the things I really did do wrong, how can I not forgive her? And Adele and Michel . . . they didn't care enough about me to do anything. They really were like sheep. And now that I know Phillipe actually hates me . . . !"

"We'll figure it out," Crump insisted. He started to try to lead Lector to the car. "But forgiving doesn't mean things are gonna get fixed and go right back to the way they were, you know. Even if you forgive your mom, it doesn't mean you're gonna suddenly trust her. She's gonna have to do more to show she really means it. That's what we had to do. We had to show we were worthy of being trusted."

"I know," Lector said. "I just . . . I'm so overwhelmed right now. . . ."

"I know," Crump said. "Believe me, I know. . . ."

Lector looked to the rented limousine. ". . . Are the others all inside?"

"Everybody who didn't go with Evangeline and Angelique to try to stop your mom," Crump said.

Lector shakily nodded. "Let's go over then. . . ."

Crump kept an arm around Lector's shoulders. "Okay."

Nesbitt had been one of the first who escaped to the car. Now he was hunched forward, digging his fingers into his hair. "This is my fault," he choked out.

"Your fault?" Gansley frowned.

"I lost my temper and I blurted out what I've been thinking about Lector's atrocious family," Nesbitt said. "It was only then that Phillipe decided to reveal the truth." He shut his eyes tightly. "It's my fault. . . ."

Gansley growled. "It would have come out sooner or later. It's better for Lector to know where he stands with them."

Nesbitt shook his head. "Now I can't face him. Crump's the one who went back to comfort him. I didn't. I couldn't. . . . That would be the worst kind of hypocrite, when I'm the reason Phillipe decided to crush him even more than he already was!"

"So what are you going to do?!" Tristan finally snapped. "They're coming to the car now. Are you just going to say nothing to him? Do you think that will make things better?!"

"He won't want to talk to me," Nesbitt retorted. "I'd be doing him a favor to stay quiet."

"Well, ten to one he wouldn't see it that way!" Tristan insisted. "He'll come in needing the support of all of his friends. Maybe especially you! If you just close yourself off and shut up, it's going to crush him even more! You can see he's at his breaking point! He finally shattered enough to start screaming at those rotten brothers he has!"

"Somethin' he should've done long ago, in my opinion," Joey said. "But Tristan's right, man. You can't just not say anything to him! Look, when those Rare Hunters first showed up back home and beat me and took my Red-Eyes card, something in me snapped too. It was the last straw in somethin' that'd been building up for a long time. I felt like I could never help anyone when it really counted. I know, I'd just finally got the money for Serenity's operation, but even then, it was only because Yugi was kind enough and generous enough to give me his prize money! He was the one who earned it, not me. When those jerks humiliated me, I just felt like that was it. I couldn't face anybody, not even Serenity who was still counting on me to show up and give her the courage to get her operation! So I limped off with my tail between my legs and didn't do anything all that night. Tristan found me in the morning and set me straight. He told me I was abandoning my sister for a card! And you know, he was right. I was letting my loss of my favorite card get to me to the point that I wanted to just sit around feelin' sorry for myself and hating myself instead of pulling myself together for somebody who still believed in me and needed me there with her!"

Serenity gasped, stunned. "Joey . . . I never knew you felt that way that night," she said softly. "I'm so sorry. . . ."

Joey drew a shaking breath. "I never wanted you to know all the details, Sis. That was probably my lowest moment. But now, I guess I felt I had to say it. It needed to come out if it might help somebody else." He nodded to Nesbitt.

Nesbitt was also stunned. He slowly straightened, looking from Joey to where Crump and Lector were almost at the car.

"I think you also need to ask yourself if staying quiet is really just for Lector . . . or if it's also for you," Joey continued. "Maybe you screwed up and maybe you didn't, but you think you did. Maybe your pride's been hurt because you thought you were doing better and this undoes it."

Nesbitt looked away. ". . . Or maybe I'm afraid of receiving the rejection Lector just received from Phillipe. I know that isn't fair to Lector. Logically, I know he wouldn't do that to me. But another part of my mind wonders why he wouldn't. He should be angry at me too!" He slammed his fist against the inside of the car door.

The door on the other side opened at the same time. "Nesbitt . . ." Lector sat down next to him and Crump climbed in too, pulling the door shut. "Nesbitt, I've been thinking the same thing about my family for a long time now. I was too afraid to ask any of them because I didn't want to hear the answer. But I needed to know. You said what I couldn't bring myself to say. I'm not angry at you." He gripped Nesbitt's shoulder. "I want to thank you."

Disbelief filled Nesbitt's heart. He slowly turned to look at his friend. "Lector . . ."

"You were feeling protective of me," Lector said, "and nothing means more to me than that right now. That's the exact opposite of how Phillipe acted! Crump is right—you're my true brother. All of you." He looked to Gansley and Johnson and Crump and then back to Nesbitt. "I have my real family right here. Somehow I . . . I just have to accept that I was never worth much of anything to most of my biological family. It's not easy and it probably never will be. But I'm not alone; I have all of you."

"You sure do," Téa said. "All of us too."

"Always," Mokuba insisted.

Lector smiled. "I know. And I am so thankful. I have so much. It's so incredible that so many people I hurt in the past can care about me at all, let alone to feel as close to me as you do."

Finally Nesbitt launched himself at Lector, hugging him close. He couldn't think of what else to say, but that seemed to be good enough. Lector returned the embrace with a fond smile.

". . . I guess by now Evangeline and the others who left have probably caught up with your mother at Adele's," Johnson said.

"Probably," Lector said. "And I suppose we had better leave as well." He sighed. "Phillipe did make a good point, sadly enough. Whoever did this to Mother would know it would only crush me all the more, so it may be someone who's out to get me specifically."

"Or it could be someone with far bigger goals in mind," Atem said with a furrowed brow. He was looking at a news story on his phone. As he turned the device for everyone to see, several people on the screen were ranting and raving at others. Another was beginning a chant similar to what Lector's mother had started.

"Oh my gosh!" Yugi gasped. "What's going on here?!"

"As near as the reporter can tell, people around the city have suddenly gone mad," Atem said. "They go up to people they have a grievance with, whether that's someone they fell out with or someone they hate or someone who co-conspired with them in hurting someone else. In every case, they try to bend these people to their wills with some sort of corrupted voodoo."

Joey grimaced. "Oh boy."

"So we really do have another bad guy on our hands," Tristan said in frustration. "Wonderful."

"Then that's all the more reason we have to find Mother!" Lector exclaimed. "She may be able to tell us something, and if we're not careful, this madman might try to put Evangeline under his spell too!"

"Or you," Gansley frowned. "Heaven knows you have a heavy weight on your shoulders now. It sounds as though it's those who are already deeply hurting who are being targeted."

"I won't let myself fall," Lector vowed. "I won't give them that satisfaction."

Gansley gave him a gruff smile. "Good."

Lector didn't say much more on the ride to Adele's house, but the steely resolve remained in his eyes. By the time they arrived, Evangeline's and Angelique's cars were already there. As with the brothers' house, Adele's front door stood open.

"Hoo boy." Crump looked to Lector. "Are you really gonna be able to handle this, Buddy?"

Lector sighed. "Let's hope so. I must admit, I'm not sure how much more I can take in one day."

"Maybe you should wait here," Nesbitt said in concern.

"No, I don't want to hide while you try to deal with my family problems," Lector said. "Besides, it could be dangerous. Let's go." He started to open the car door.

Johnson looked to Gansley with worried eyes. He hadn't known much to say during Nesbitt's anguish or Lector's, but he felt for them both and worried that it really wasn't a good idea for Lector to go into Adele's house right now.

Gansley just sighed and shook his head. He was concerned too, but if Lector insisted on going, there wasn't really anything they could do about it. He was an adult and had the right to make that decision for himself.

Together the large group headed up to the porch and through the open doorway. "Hello?" Lector called uncertainly.

Adele suddenly appeared from around the kitchen doorway. "Démas. . . ." She looked away just as quickly. "Evangeline told me what happened with Phillipe. I'm so sorry. . . ."

"You are?" Crump snapped.

"I really am." Adele looked back to her brother. "Everything has gone so wrong ever since the beginning of last year. Father and Phillipe tried to blame you, but I knew it wasn't your fault."

"Then why didn't you ever stand up for me, Adele?" Lector asked. "That was all I ever wanted, for someone in this miserable, twisted family to still love me and not to think of me as some kind of a germ because I made a terrible mistake in my life!"

Adele looked away. One hand still gripped the doorframe. "I didn't know what to do," she said at last. "This whole thing has been like some kind of a nightmare I can't wake up from. I used to think we were a happy family when I was a child. But when I grew up, Démas, I saw the ugly truth. Father ruled the family with an iron fist. Michel and I were afraid of him. Phillipe just wanted his respect. Marie and Evangeline adored him; they were too young to understand. Now Evangeline has had to grow up so much in the last fifteen months that I barely recognize her. Mother has tried to take Father's place, including with the iron fist, but it just hasn't worked very well. Mother is crumbling under the strain of what's happened to this family . . . and so am I." A tear slipped down her cheek. "You were really the lucky one, Démas, to move away from all of this and to even find people who would choose to be with you and love you like your biological family mostly never did. I've wished on many occasions that I could have got away too."

Lector heaved a weary, resigned sigh. "I know your life hasn't been easy either, Adele," he said. "Your husband was a mess and a bad example to your older children."

"I barely recognize them either," Adele said. "They made life Hell for you, and for me too, really. Gabriel is just about the only real light in my life. I pray every day that somehow Evangeline and I can keep him from turning out as poorly as most of the family has."

"Wait a minute," Nesbitt growled. "Where is Evangeline? And where's your mother? Did she already come and put her spell on you?! How do we know you're saying all these things of your own free will?!"

Mokuba let out a horrified gasp. "No! . . ." He ran over and gripped Lector's hand. "This has gotta be real! You have to mean everything you're saying!" He looked at Adele in pleading desperation. If this was all the product of a spell, he really was terrified as to how Lector would deal with it.

"I do," Adele insisted. "Mother was intercepted and taken to the back of the house by Evangeline and the other people with her. They're trying to find out now how she got like this."

"You'd better be telling the truth," Nesbitt growled.

"I believe she is," Lector said. "I don't think a spell could be this convincing."

"But we should find out what's happening back there," Atem spoke up. "Will you take us?" He looked to Adele.

"Yes. . . ." But she looked hesitant. "If you're not careful, though, maybe you'll fall under this bizarre spell. . . ."

"The spell is supposed to make Lector's family want to reunite with him," Atem said, "so I doubt there is anything it could do to us."

Adele's brow furrowed. "The last thing she was ranting about was getting the six elemental rings away from their keepers," she said slowly.

Lector started. "What?!"

"She said that once all of her children wanted to reunite with Démas, we would gang up on him and his friends and Seto Kaiba and relieve them all of their rings," Adele said. "Then they could live in peace."

Seto snorted. "I'd be more than happy to give up this thing, but not to a brainwashed nutcase who probably wants its power either for herself or for the boss who warped her mind."

"No kidding," Crump exclaimed. "Then we'd just be in more trouble than ever! At least if we've got the rings, we know some screwball doesn't have them!"

"Who even knows about the elemental rings?" Téa exclaimed. "They were supposed to be a secret!"

"Except to anybody who's read Dr. Raven's book," Tristan said. "He could've easily told somebody about them and set them out with a cockeyed plan like this to get them!"

"That's a good point, Tristan," Joey said. "Our new enemy could be almost anybody!"

Atem looked towards a closed door at the back of the house. "I had better go in there. But everyone who holds elemental rings had best stay back for now. We don't know what's going to come out at us!"

"We know it won't be good!" Crump said.

Adele sighed. "Go on and go back there," she wearily told him, "but don't expect too much."

Atem was halfway to the door when a bright light suddenly shone out from under it and the door burst open from the blast. Yami Bakura was standing near it, the Infinity Ring glowing off and on as he glowered at someone beyond the door.

"What's going on?!" Atem demanded.

"I finally had to put this woman to sleep," Yami Bakura growled. "I used the Infinity Ring to try to determine whose power she was under. It showed me the silhouette of a man, but I didn't recognize it."

"Why does there always havta be a catch like that?!" Joey cried, messing up his hair.

"Is she alright?" Lector asked, coming up behind Atem.

"I didn't hurt her," Yami Bakura grunted. "But I don't know if she will awaken in her right mind or not."

Evangeline hurried out of the room. "Oh Démas, I'm so sorry I left," she exclaimed. "I was so furious at Phillipe and I wanted to hurry and catch up to Mother before she could cause any more heartache for you. . . . And maybe I figured your dear friends could comfort you the best. . . . I never would have left otherwise!"

Lector gave her a genuine smile. "I know. It's alright, Evangeline. You did need to get here."

"Does that mean Adele is telling the truth, that she isn't under a spell?" Nesbitt demanded.

"We got here ahead of Mother," Evangeline said. "So yes, we stopped her before she could start in on a spell for Adele."

"So now what're we gonna do?!" Joey groaned.

"We'll have to watch over her until she awakens and go from there," Yami Bakura said. "We need to know if she knows the identity of whomever is attempting to bend her will to theirs."

"She can stay here for now," Adele said. "She might as well."

"Where's Gabriel anyway?" Mokuba frowned.

"He's at a friend's house," Adele said. "I don't look forward to him coming back to all this."

"So all of us have to stay here too?!" Nesbitt growled.

Lector sank into a chair, suddenly looking weary beyond measure. "I suppose we should," he sighed.

Gansley laid a hand on Lector's shoulder. "We could go until she wakes up and then come back," he suggested.

Lector shook his head. "It'd probably be better to be here the instant she wakes up."

"I know it's hard for you to be here, Démas," Adele said, "and that's partially my fault. I'm sorry. I'll go out of the room while you're here."

"You don't have to do that," Lector said. "It's your house. Anyway . . . if you really are sorry and would like to try to patch things up, I would like that as well."

"I should have done it before," Adele said.

"How strangely ironic," Atem said quietly to Gansley and Crump, "if Mrs. Leichter's rampage was meant to force the others to reunite with her son through a spell and it ends up indirectly causing at least one of them to reunite with him in all sincerity."

"I hope that is indeed the case," Gansley replied. "I honestly fear what might happen to Lector if Adele is not sincere."

Nesbitt clenched a fist. He most certainly did as well. And he didn't trust Adele after all the anguish and heartbreak. He would be watching her very closely.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes: Thank you for your suggestion, anonymous reader, but I really don't want to cross this over with **_**All Dogs Go to Heaven**_**. Somehow I just don't feel like dogs with human-level intelligence quite matches the tone I want here, lol. Anyway, the sequel movie and TV series moved the setting to San Francisco, which is where I tend to think the characters live now.**

**Chapter Four**

The mood in Adele's house was tense. For a while everyone mostly stood around in awkward silence, not sure what to think or do while waiting for Mrs. Leichter to wake up. But finally Crump had an idea.

"Hey, do you know if the family's got some wild connection with Berserk Dragon?" he blurted.

Adele looked to him in bewilderment. "Excuse me?"

"Well, it seems to keep popping up in your siblings' lives, and we found a brooch with it and this book of spells or whatever that seems to talk about summoning it to help the family it's bound to," Crump said.

"Then you know more than me," Adele said, shaking her head. "I've never heard of any of this."

Evangeline was looking through said book as they spoke. "This really is a treasure trove," she exclaimed. "All of these handwritten spells. . . . And everything's the right kind of _vodun_, for helping and not hurting. . . . Oh wait." She grimaced at the last page. "This is a spell for raining justice and judgment on your enemies. . . ."

Lector frowned. "Such as Dr. Raven's ancestors?"

"Probably," Evangeline said slowly. "There's a warning above it. . . . 'Do not use unless absolutely necessary for protecting the family's lives.'"

". . . Well, at least there's that," Crump said uncomfortably.

"That's still freaky," Joey declared.

"Démas?" Mrs. Leichter suddenly called from the bedroom.

Lector started. "She's awake. I suppose I'll have to go see what she wants. . . ." He got up and headed for the bedroom, dreading it all the while. Would she still be under the spell? Would it be broken and she would no longer have any interest in reuniting the family? Would he be able to keep himself from falling apart?

"Wait!" Atem exclaimed. "Remember that she was talking about taking the elemental rings!"

"I know." Lector took his off and handed it to Nesbitt. "You keep it safe for me for a few minutes."

Nesbitt blinked in surprise but nodded. "I won't let it out of my sight."

Taking a deep breath, Lector approached the bedroom doorway. "Hello, Mother. . . ."

Mrs. Leichter was slumped in a chair, looking towards him. One lone tear trailed from her eye. "Démas . . . my sweet boy," she whispered. "I'm so sorry. . . ."

Lector gripped the doorframe. "What is this all about, Mother?" he asked. "Why are you going around trying to force everybody to make up with me?"

"Because they should," Mrs. Leichter said helplessly. "Because I ruined everything for this family and . . . !" She trailed off with a choked sob.

"Don't you think there's any chance of them wanting to reconcile with me on their own?" Lector said.

"They haven't wanted to before," Mrs. Leichter said.

"Because of you and Father," Lector pointed out. "At least in some cases. Phillipe finally admitted to my face that he hates me."

"Oh no. . . ." Mrs. Leichter got up and came over to Lector, reaching out a hand to touch his cheek. "I'm so sorry. . . ."

Lector flinched at the touch, but didn't push her hand away. It wasn't like when he was a child, no matter how much he wished it would be so. ". . . Did someone put you up to all this, Mother?" he asked.

She just stared at him. "Why, what do you mean, Démas?"

"I mean did someone get you to go out trying to round everybody in the family up with _vodun_ spells," Lector said. "Apparently there's been a rash of that today." He held up his phone with the same news story Atem had been looking at earlier.

She looked away. "It was something I should have done anyway. It's my fault you've been so badly mistreated."

"Well, you most certainly haven't helped," Lector shot back. "But I don't think it's all on you. Everybody made their own decisions. They could have chosen something different, like Evangeline did. Instead, for one reason or another, each one of them wanted to ostracize me. I don't appreciate it. No matter what you think I've done, I don't deserve to be treated like that."

"That's why I've been trying to fix it!" Mrs. Leichter exclaimed.

"But don't you see it won't mean anything if you put them under a spell?!" Lector burst out. "I want my family to want to be with me, not to be forced into thinking they want to!" He stepped back. "I already have people who have chosen to be with me even when they could have left. They're more my family than most of the people whose name I share. Please don't try any more to put them under a spell, Mother. And if you have any clues about the person who wanted you to do this, I need to know."

Mrs. Leichter looked away. ". . . I don't know who he is, but he knew all about what was happening," she said quietly. "Like he'd been observing everything. He offered me the power to reunite the family."

"In exchange for what, Mother?" Lector countered. "I know he wouldn't give that kind of power up for free!"

"He just wanted those rings," Mrs. Leichter said. "But that would help you, really! You wouldn't have to have that burden anymore. . . ."

"That would depend on what he wanted them for," Lector countered. "Can't you see that it could be dangerous?! You don't know anything about this man and you agreed to work for him!"

Mrs. Leichter looked away. "He wanted to help me fix the family. That was all I wanted."

"You should have known better than to think magic and spells would fix anything," Lector frowned. "Are you still under his spell now?" He wasn't sure he would or could believe her answer, but he felt he had to ask.

"I . . ." Mrs. Leichter turned away. "Everything has been so wrong. For the first time, it was so clear and there was a solution to the pain. . . . I wish I could go back to when you and all the others were little and do it all over."

Lector certainly understood her longing to re-do the past. How many times had he vainly wished for the same things, especially regarding the Kaiba brothers?

"Well, you can't," he said at last. "You just have to deal with the time that's left. And Mother, if you honestly want me back in your right mind, I would be so happy. But it would still take me time to be able to trust you again."

"Of course." She still wasn't facing him, but she patted his hand. "You were a good boy, Démas. Your downfall came because you were seeking vengeance, just like I taught you to." Finally she turned back, and her eyes were filled with the deepest guilt and sorrow.

Lector was chilled. He recognized that too. He had seen it in Nesbitt's eyes so much. ". . . You think what happened was your fault?" he exclaimed in disbelief. "I wasn't following your lessons about _vodun_ at all! I had that vengeful, bitter streak to my personality before you ever so much as mentioned that some practitioners of _vodun_ believe they have a sacred right to go after anyone they deem worthy of justice and judgment!"

"I'm sure what I taught you had some effect, even if you don't consciously realize it," Mrs. Leichter said.

Lector sighed and massaged the bridge of his nose. He couldn't tell whether she was still under a spell or not. It was certainly foreign to him to hear her talking like this, but he supposed it was possible that she truly did feel these ways and had kept it locked up in her heart. On the other hand, what if whoever had tried to trick her was still watching everything through her eyes and hearing through her ears and even manipulating her words? He had to be careful what he said around her. It would be best, for instance, not to mention anything about Berserk Dragon.

"What's going on?" Nesbitt called from the hallway.

"I don't know," Lector honestly answered.

Adele appeared in the doorway. "Are you still going to try to spell me, Mother?"

Mrs. Leichter started and looked to her. "Will you reconcile with Démas on your own?"

"I've already been trying," Adele said.

Mrs. Leichter sighed and looked content. "Then I don't need to do anything more."

Lector looked to Nesbitt, who was peering over Adele's shoulder. Now it looked obvious that she was indeed still under the spell.

Adele thought so too. "It won't do any good to go back to Michel and Phillipe," she said. "Why don't you stay here for a while, Mother? Gabriel should be home soon."

"I should really see your father in prison," Mrs. Leichter said slowly.

"We can all go see him when Gabriel gets home," Adele replied.

"Well . . . alright." Mrs. Leichter still looked doubtful.

Lector relaxed. "And we should go. I'll see you all later." He walked past Adele, casting her a thankful look on the way.

Nesbitt slipped the amethyst ring back to him. "We're going home?"

"For now," Lector agreed. He wasn't sure what else to do, and he wanted to talk where his mother couldn't overhear. Somehow they needed to figure out who was really behind this. It looked like the only way to break the spell was to go directly to him.

Everyone bade Adele and Mrs. Leichter Goodbye and followed Lector back outside. Yami Bakura turned and frowned at the house. "Someone should stay here and keep watch on that woman. Who knows what she'll do next."

"I agree," Atem said. "You and I had better trade off on shifts. None of the elemental ring bearers should keep watch."

Mokuba relaxed to hear that. Both Seto and Lector would be safe.

"I'll take the first watch," Yami Bakura said. "All of you go on now."

Bakura looked to him in concern. "Be careful, Yami. . . ."

"I'll be fine," Yami Bakura insisted. "And I actually have a phone now, so I can keep in contact."

Bakura managed a smile. "That's one good thing."

The thief watched as the others drove off in their respective vehicles. Then, sighing, he leaned back against a tree, concealed by the low-hanging branches covered in Spanish moss.

Sometimes it still seemed unbelievable to him that he was alive, in a sense. He still wasn't fully mortal and wouldn't be unless he succeeded in that mysterious battle he'd been saved for all along, but as long as he had the Infinity Ring it was a good enough imitation of being alive.

And was he finally starting to figure the Ring out more? He had got it to activate again when they had needed to find the Chinese pearls. If he could just keep that up, maybe he had some hope of being able to use the blasted thing to its full potential. He would need to be able to during that battle . . . whenever it happened.

He had been more on edge and tense ever since they had learned of Yami Marik's unholy alliance in that parallel dimension. Somehow he knew that was going to happen here as well. It made all too much sense as to why he had been chosen to fight in this battle. He could only hope he could stop them from causing as much destruction as their counterparts had.

How strange to be thinking of that too, after all that had been done in Egypt. As the Mad Tomb Robber, falling deeply under Zorc's spell after obtaining the Millennium Ring, he had tried to cause so much devastation. He had focused on the Pharaoh's court before getting the Ring, believing they were the ones to blame for the Kul Elna massacre. Once the Ring had been in his possession, what had been left of his mind had snapped and he had broadened his targets and approach, going after everyone in the nearby village and forcing Atem to come after him to save them.

He ran a tan-skinned hand over the Infinity Ring and suddenly gripped it as he activated its power to change to his other form. The hand turned white and shrank in size to match Bakura's. The people in the house didn't know him in his smaller-framed, Bakura's brother form, so he would have a better chance of surprising them if need be.

"Someday, Zorc," he muttered under his breath. "Someday we shall meet again, now that you have control of my spirit no longer."

And as to who would be the victor, well . . . they would just have to wait and see. But he would fight to a second death to ensure it wouldn't be Zorc.

xxxx

All during the drive back to the house, Lector was caught up in his thoughts of everything that had been happening. He had known from the beginning that this trip would be difficult for him; going and getting his belongings out of the little house had hurt enough. But things had only been going steadily downhill since then. If he could believe Adele's words, then she at least actually wanted to repair everything. He tried to focus on that, the one spot of good in this nightmare. But it was impossible not to think of all the bad that had happened too.

"Hey Buddy . . ."

He looked to Crump, who was watching him in deep concern.

"Are you gonna be okay?"

Lector let out a shaking breath. "I have to be," he said. "There's no time for me to snap or break down. We have to solve this mess!"

"If you don't take some time for yourself, you're really gonna be a wreck," Crump said.

"I'll be a wreck in any case," Lector replied. "I feel like one right now."

Nesbitt growled. "If your mother just hadn't decided to do something new with that house. . . ."

"We would've ended up here anyway," Lector said. "This new villain, whoever he is, would have started his rampage and probably still would have targeted my mother. Even if he hadn't, we would have come to try to protect Evangeline from him once we heard about the city going berserk."

"Yeah, I guess," Nesbitt said. "But maybe it wouldn't have ended up as painful for you that way."

"Who's to say," Lector sighed. He leaned back in the seat and closed his eyes.

Gansley sighed too, and laid a hand on Lector's shoulder. "We have to figure out what we're going to do to find out who's behind this," he said.

"Well, I say the first step is findin' out if Dr. Raven has any more creepy relatives out there!" Joey declared. "Kaiba, can't you do some fancy computering and see what comes up?!"

"I'm already on it," Seto grunted. He had his phone out and was scrolling through results. "I've connected remotely with my supercomputer at home and she's working on it. Meanwhile, I'm doing an Internet search for Germaines, but that will most likely go nowhere. It's an extremely common name in Creole culture."

Joey made a face. "Oh great."

"Maybe we should also keep looking through the house too?" Johnson suggested. "Nesbitt made that great find with the old voodoo book. Maybe there's some records somewhere telling about the feud between the families and how the Berserk Dragon came to be connected with Lector's?"

"It's certainly worth a try," Gansley said.

"Too bad those ghosts won't just tell us," Joey scowled. "They insist on livin' in the house and spyin' on everybody and keepin' us all out of the North wing, but they won't give anything in return!"

"And there's no point expecting anything from any of them," Lector said. He opened his eyes again and stared at the ceiling of the car. "They have all made it pretty clear that they want to be left alone."

"I don't know why they won't leave us alone then," Joey retorted.

"They probably wish all the people would clear out and leave them to party through the whole place," Crump said. "I'll bet they had a blast during all the years the house was vacant."

"No doubt," Lector said.

"By the way, did Evangeline ever say if the siren in the pool is gone?!" Crump demanded.

Lector frowned. He had all but forgotten that problem. "You know, she never has," he realized. "Maybe the exorcist never had any luck getting rid of it."

"Oh great." Crump stared up at the ceiling. "So we'll havta worry about that comin' out to bug us too!"

Johnson's eyes filled with worry. The siren had ensnared him when he had been at his most vulnerable and despairing. If she tried to do the same to Lector, she might very well succeed in putting him under her spell and leading him to his death—especially if anything more happened to crush him.

It was a relief when all the vehicles pulled up at the house. Everyone quickly got out and headed inside with their various plans in mind.

Bakura hurried over to Atem. "You'll stay alert to help Yami and take over for him, won't you?" he demanded.

"Of course," Atem said. "I have the volume on my phone up in case he contacts me before it's time to switch."

Bakura nodded in approval. "I'm glad he finally agreed that getting a phone was a good idea."

Joey went over to Serenity. "How are you holdin' up, Sis?" he asked. "With all this family trouble, I mean."

Serenity sighed. "It's really sad to see how badly everything's fallen apart for them," she said. "I hope Adele actually is going to try to make amends. Poor Mr. Lector needs that so badly. I think it would help Evangeline too."

"Maybe," Duke said. "Although since she's been reacting more vehemently than Lector, I don't think that fire will fade easy. She'll probably still struggle with forgiving Adele, and their mother, and everyone else."

"And it's hard to blame her," David remarked.

"I don't blame her at all," Nesbitt said as he came up to them. "She has every right to struggle with forgiving them. I won't forgive them easily either."

Serenity sighed. "It's not that it's not understandable, but . . . aren't we supposed to forgive everyone?"

"It's easy to say that," Nesbitt said. "It's not so easy to do it. Not even all of you can forgive immediately. For some of you, like Tristan, it takes longer than it does for others. I've rarely met anyone like you, Serenity."

Serenity blushed a bit. "Is that a good thing?"

Nesbitt looked embarrassed now too. "Yeah," he said. "It's a good thing. But just . . . be careful. One of these days, you might forgive and trust someone too fast who shouldn't be trusted at all." With that he brushed past Serenity to catch up with Lector and the rest of the Big Five.

"I have to admit, that's good advice," David mused.

"I trust Serenity," Duke said. "She's made good judgment calls so far."

Bakura sighed as they all went into the house. He picked up Oreo, who had decided to stretch out on the round table near the front door. "Hello, Oreo," he greeted his beloved cat.

She meowed, nuzzling him, and looked over his shoulder expectantly.

"Yami didn't come back with us," Bakura said. "He stayed to watch Lector's mother to make sure there won't be any more trouble from her."

Oreo gave a murr of displeasure.

"You don't really think she understands what you're sayin', do you?" Joey blinked.

"Well, why not?" Bakura countered. He petted the black-and-white fur as Oreo settled down over his shoulder.

"Because . . ." Joey threw his hands in the air. "Eh, nevermind!"

Oreo blinked at him, looking oddly satisfied and amused.

Evangeline had to chuckle in spite of herself. "I'm sure animals are more intelligent than we might ever believe," she said. "I always love when you bring your kitty, Bakura. She's a lot of fun."

Bakura smiled. "Yami and I certainly love her. Even if Yami won't admit it out loud."

Oreo purred.

"I've been wondering how we're going to keep our rings safe from attack," Gansley said. "If this new enemy wants them, he may send more of his brainwashed victims to attack us."

"Eh, you can take 'em," Joey said. "And we'll all be here to help!"

"But they won't want to hurt them," Yugi said in concern. "They're not threats in their right minds!"

"You know, this kind of seems like the TV show _Miraculous_," Serenity said. "People getting brainwashed when they're at their lowest points, being told to get the superheroes' powers in exchange for power of their own. . . ."

"Oh, so now we're lookin' for a bad guy who watches kids' TV for inspiration?" Crump grunted.

"On the other hand, what if the creators of the show were inspired by something they heard in real-life?" Atem countered. "Perhaps we should dig more deeply into this angle."

"That's pretty freaky," Joey gulped. "To think of there maybe bein' a real-life Hawkmoth. . . ."

Several blank stares immediately fixed on Joey.

"You know character names?!" Tristan said in disbelief.

". . . Hey, I just see it sometimes when Serenity's watchin' it!" Joey countered defensively.

Serenity chuckled. "Sometimes you're more into it than I am!" she said with a teasing gleam in her eye.

"What?! I am not!" Joey retorted.

Slightly amused, Lector walked over to Crump. "As I recall, you compared us to Captain Planet and the Planeteers when we first received our rings," he remarked.

"Heh. Yeah, I guess so." Crump rubbed the back of his head.

"Or the Power Rangers," Nesbitt grunted, almost under his breath. He went completely red when he realized he'd been overheard. ". . . I watched it for the mechas! That's all! And I haven't seen it since it was in first-run." He folded his arms. "I wasn't watching reruns on Netflix or anything like that."

Lector had to chuckle. "Oh Nesbitt. . . . It wouldn't matter if you were."

"All kidding aside, it really is a good question how we're going to combat anyone who might try to get the rings from us," Johnson worried.

"I suppose we'll have to deal with that when it happens," Gansley said. "But if they all try to use voodoo on us, how will we stop that?"

"Stop them from reciting stuff so we can't hear it?" Crump said. "Maybe I could encase 'em in magic ice or something with my ring."

"Well, that's sadistic," Johnson remarked. "Especially if they're really innocent civilians."

"Just long enough to immobilize them and figure out how to break the spells over them!" Crump defended.

"My mother certainly seems to still be under a spell." Lector sighed and took out his phone. "I'm going to see if Snakes is available now to talk about the past."

Everyone quieted down while Lector dialed. After several agonizing rings, it clicked as Snakes picked up. "Hello?"

"Hello, Mr. Tolliver," Lector greeted him. "This is Démas Lector. I'm sorry to bother you, but some strange things are happening again and we need some information."

"It's no bother," Snakes said. "What can I do?"

"Do you know anything about the _vodun _feud between the Leichters and the Germaines?" Lector asked.

"Oh . . . uh, hmm." Now Snakes sounded awkward. "Well . . . I remember Ismael talking about it now and then. He said the story was handed down in his family that the Germaines started it. Something about some trouble with the land, the Germaines falsely insisting that the Leichters stole theirs right from under them through cheating and trickery. But meanwhile, the Germaines insisted that the Leichters were lying about it being false and they were just trying to cover for their ancestors."

Overhearing, Evangeline half-growled, half-groaned in frustration. "So nobody knows what the real story is!"

"Guess not, unless it's somewhere in the old city records or something," Snakes said.

"That's something to look into," Lector said. "Thank you, Mr. Tolliver."

"Sorry I can't be of more help," Snakes said. "I . . . uh, hope you won't uncover some skeletons in your closet."

"I already have a closetful," Lector said wearily. "I don't think finding out some of our ancestors cheated the Germaines will make it worse."

Atem looked concerned as Lector hung up. "I wonder if there's any chance that the Germaines are telling the truth," he said.

"You're going to side with them?!" Evangeline cried in dismay.

"I'm not siding with anyone," Atem sternly replied. "But think about this. What if the reason the ghosts in the house are so unhelpful is because they're Germaines and not Leichters?"

Everyone was stunned into silence.

"That . . . actually sounds pretty possible," Tristan finally admitted.

"But then . . . what can we do?" Angelique exclaimed.

"I say we should try one more time to communicate with them," Atem said. "Let's confront them with this possibility and ask them if it's true."

Evangeline clenched a fist. "Alright," she said. "I'm willing to give it a try."

"And with any luck, perhaps we can forge a new alliance not only between the two families, but between the living and the dead," Atem said.

Lector's eyes flickered. He wasn't as sure the ghosts would ever agree to help them defeat the current disaster in town, especially if they were Germaines. But then again, most of the Leichters weren't very helpful either. The thought of an alliance was indeed a nice one.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

No one was quite sure what would be the best place to try and get the ghosts to communicate with them. The one that walked the halls seemed the most benign or even benevolent, since she had guided Nesbitt to Lector the last time they had been in this house. But she was also very elusive, never wanting to stay to tell what it was she was looking for in the halls. Still, they determined that she might be their best bet to start with, so they went upstairs and stood in the hall.

"Hello?" Serenity called. "Are you here? We just want to talk to you!"

"We need to know if you are from the Germaine family," Lector said. "I don't know if my ancestors wronged the Germaines or not, but if they did, I am very sorry."

"And Angelique is a Germaine!" Evangeline declared. "Aren't we trying to repair the damage done in the past by Angelique living here?!"

"Please, we may need your help to stop a madman in town," Atem implored. "He's using voodoo to ensnare tortured souls all over the city and get them to work for him! If you believe in justice, you can't want him to succeed with his cruel scheme!"

For a long moment there was nothing. Then, slowly, the form of a young woman in white with flowing dark hair began to materialize in front of them.

Joey screamed. "The ghost really came!"

"Well, that's a good thing, isn't it?" Crump snapped. But even as he said it, he gulped and quaked a bit. Seeing ghosts was not high on his list of favorite things to do.

The wispy figure stood looking at them without speaking. Then, finally, she turned and began her calm walk along the hall.

"So . . . are we supposed to follow her?!" Joey gulped.

"Let's find out!" It was Angelique who hurried ahead of all the others, anxious to discern if this spectre truly was one of her ancestors. She had only had brief glimpses of who her ancestors were before, and most of them weren't anything to be proud of. She longed to know more, maybe to even find more who were good people.

Everyone was displeased when the ghost walked through a wall at the end of the hall and to the right, and Angelique had to stumble and put out her arms to keep from crashing into it.

"Aww man!" Joey cried. "Did she just screw us over?!"

Lector frowned at the wall. "I don't know. Maybe there's something behind this?"

Evangeline tilted her head as she stared at the seeming blank space. "There's not supposed to be," she mused. "Although that is funny, isn't it? It looks like a space big enough for a room, so why isn't there a door leading into one?"

Ishizu pondered the problem. "What if it was closed off for some reason?" she said. "We've thought the ghost was interested in the trunk under the window, but what if in actuality she was hoping to draw people's attention to this part of the wall?"

Lector felt across the wall. "It doesn't feel like there's a door underneath the wallpaper," he said slowly. "If this leads into a room, maybe there's a secret lever that opens it."

Everyone quickly gathered around, also reaching up to the wall as they tried to feel for any secret entrances. But the wall remained stubbornly closed, and it seemed like a lost cause.

"Wait a minute," Téa suddenly exclaimed. "What room is next-door to this wall?"

"Mine," Gansley said. "Or the room I had before I agreed to room with Crump and Johnson to ease Crump's mind."

"And last time, you woke up with a ghost watching you," Evangeline remembered. "Maybe it came out of that wall!"

"And maybe the secret passageway is in my room, against that wall," Gansley mused.

"Let's go look!" Crump chirped.

The cold, eerie feeling in the bedroom was completely palpable. The moment they all walked in, many of them wanted to turn and run out. But Gansley and Lector steadfastly led the group to the wall and began feeling across it and knocking on it.

Joey yelped. "It feels ice-cold!"

"Are you scared of the cold, Wheeler?" Seto grunted.

"No! Just what the cold means in this freaky house!" Joey retorted.

"And no one can blame you on that, Joseph," Johnson said. "But we have to keep looking! If there is a room behind this wall, it might be important."

As he spoke, he absently rested his hand on a light sconce fixed to the wall. Without warning, half the wall swung open and he started to fall through. He yelped in shock.

"Johnson!" Joey exclaimed. He grabbed for the lawyer and also tumbled into the opening.

Gansley grabbed the wall to keep it from going back into place. "Are you two alright?!"

Joey and Johnson were in a dazed heap on the floor. "Yeah, I guess so," Joey mumbled. He pushed himself off of his former enemy. "So . . . what is this place?"

Johnson knelt up, looking around the new room. ". . . It looks like it hasn't been touched since the 18th Century," he gasped.

Lector hurried inside and lit an oil lamp on a table. The soft glow soon filled the space and most of the rest of the group crowded in to look around.

"This is beautiful," Serenity said in reverent amazement. "Everything is so perfectly preserved . . . but why? Why would this room have been sealed off like this?"

Gansley opened a drawer in the nightstand next to the bed and started to rifle through the contents. "There's an old pack of letters in here," he announced, holding up a bundle tied with a red ribbon. "And . . . a wedding invitation?!"

Mai came over and took the latter from him. "According to this, a Germaine and a Leichter were going to get married," she said with a surprised frown.

Duke facepalmed. "Oh please don't tell me we've got a Romeo and Juliet situation here," he groaned.

Gansley had settled on the bed and was opening the letter pack. "No," he mused as he skimmed over the top one. "I think what we've got could be the reason the families started to feud in the first place."

"How do you mean?" Lector asked.

"According to this letter, the families both fully supported the union," Gansley said. "That wouldn't have been the case if they were already at each other's throats. But what if something went wrong with the marriage?"

Evangeline suddenly gasped. "The murder scene on the roof!"

Joey quaked. "I'd forgot all about that!" he cried in horror.

"That could have been exactly it," Gansley said. "The couple could have started to argue and the man was killed, either accidentally or deliberately. That would have been more than enough to set both families off."

"But then why was Snakes told it had to do with the land?" Johnson wondered. "Wouldn't they have preserved the memory of a murder?"

"After so much time, who knows," Gansley sighed. "Perhaps the man's family thought the woman's family agreed to the marriage just so she could gain control of the land. According to the envelope, she was the Leichter and the man was the Germaine." He went stiff when it suddenly felt like someone had sat on the other side of the bed. None of the others had moved.

Joey screamed in utter terror. "Do you see that?!" He pointed at the bed with a shaking finger.

Everyone stared. The mattress was sinking down, but no one was visibly on it in that spot.

Mokuba grabbed his brother's hand. "Seto!"

Seto just narrowed his eyes in annoyance at the ghost's antics.

Gansley stumbled to his feet and turned to look too. Though he didn't speak, his eyes showed he was disturbed.

". . . Okay, that mattress malfunction is the creepiest thing I've seen tonight," David gulped.

"And as usual, the ghosts still won't talk, even when we're trying to solve their mystery," Tristan said in disgust.

"Maybe we should go on the roof and see if we can watch the ghosts acting out what happened up there," Mai said.

"Really?!" Joey was horrified.

"Ugh. It might be a good clue, genius," Mai told him.

"You know, this really looks like a girl's room," Téa remarked. "If this house belonged to the Germaines and a Leichter moved in when she got married, would it be all the way at the back of the house like this? I mean, wouldn't she and her guy have the master bedroom?"

"Maybe this wasn't her room and they just moved her things in here when they wanted to close it off," Mai suggested. "Only . . . why keep the letters at all?" She frowned. "Why not burn them?"

"I don't think we've solved anything," Crump said. "We're just adding more questions!"

"It sure seems like it," Yugi sighed. "But going up to the roof is a good idea. How about some of us go and some stay down here to keep looking around?"

"Sounds good to me," Joey said. "There's probably lots more evidence we can find down here!"

"If you're totally okay with going over the room while a ghost is obviously sitting on the bed," Téa shuddered.

Joey frowned. "A ghost here or ghosts fighting on the roof. . . . What's worse?"

Amused, Mai turned away. "Well, while you're thinking about it, some of us are going to head up there and see what kind of a show those ghosts put on tonight."

Several others started filing out after Mai. The rest lingered, not sure what to do.

"Are there even any other places to look for stuff in here?" Tristan wondered.

"Under the bed," Mokuba quavered. "I don't wanna go over there, though."

Nesbitt got down on the floor and shined his phone flashlight under the bed. "There's nothing under here. . . . Oh wait." One lone object caught the light of his phone, and he pulled it out.

"What is that?!" Lector stared at the shiny thing in Nesbitt's hand.

"It's . . . a ring," Nesbitt said in surprise. "Actually, it looks very similar to ours." He turned it over in his hand. "But that's impossible; there's only six elemental rings, based on the six Duel Monsters elements. . . ."

Evangeline stopped walking out of the room and came back to look. "Maybe it's her engagement or wedding ring," she suggested.

Angelique frowned. "It was my great-great-grandmother who was entrusted with the elemental rings by that Shadi person, but where were they before that? Maybe someone tried to make a copy of one of them."

"They couldn't have got the box open. Remember?" Seto grunted. "It was sealed in ancient Egypt and only we could open it." But he rolled his eyes a bit. Magic still annoyed him to no end.

"Oh, that's right," Angelique sighed. "Well, then I have no idea."

Atem's phone dinged and he looked at it. ". . . And Lector's mother is insisting on going to her husband in prison, according to Yami Bakura. Adele and Gabriel have no choice but to go with her." He sighed. "It looks like I'd better get over there and try to help run damage control."

"Yami Bakura can probably handle it," Duke said.

"Maybe so, but I would feel better to go along," Atem said. "We're hoping to somehow draw out the man controlling her."

"That sounds pretty risky," Crump said. "You might get in over your heads!"

"Let's hope not," Atem said. "Yugi, perhaps you can look through the encyclopedia of magical objects and see if a ring like the one Nesbitt found is in it?"

"Well, I can try," Yugi said slowly.

"You really brought that thing with you?" Duke said in disbelief.

"It seems like we need it so much that bringing it along was a good idea," Yugi awkwardly chuckled.

"Makes sense to me," Joey said.

"So is anybody still going up on the roof?" Crump wondered.

"Some of us definitely need to do that," Evangeline agreed. "Maybe the ghosts still won't put on their show for us, but maybe they will now that we're trying to really discover what happened in the past."

In the end, they decided that Joey would drive Atem, Lector, and Nesbitt to Yami Bakura while the others would continue their search throughout the house. That enabled Joey to escape the ghosts but still be helpful. And with two of the elemental ring holders along, they could hide and observe what was happening and come out if they were needed.

"You two be careful," Gansley sternly told Lector and Nesbitt. "Since this madman wants the elemental rings, you have to be certain he remains unaware of your presence."

"We'll be completely quiet," Nesbitt insisted.

"And all of you be careful here," Lector said in concern. "Who knows what these ghosts might pull, especially if they are Germaines and are still furious about the past!"

"We'll stay alert," Gansley promised.

Yugi sighed as he watched them drive off moments later. "I should really be along too," he said. "It feels strange not to be there on a mission of Atem's. We were always together."

"You have an important mission too, Yugi," Téa said. "We need to see if that ring Nesbitt found is in the book!"

"I know," Yugi sighed.

"And the way things go, you'll probably have plenty of chances to be with Atem on this case," Mokuba said.

"Yeah. . . . I just hope I won't be needed now when I'm not there," Yugi frowned. He went over to the couch and sat down with the encyclopedia. Holding the ring in one hand, he began carefully turning pages.

"It really is weird how it looks like it's part of the set," Serenity said. "But it has a yellow-ish gemstone. . . ."

"It's peridot," Mai said.

"I wonder if it's supposed to be a fake Light element ring," Yugi mused. "The real one is a clear diamond, but maybe someone thought they could get away with making it seem like yellow would represent Light."

"Works for me," Tristan shrugged.

"Well, while you're looking, I'm going to take some of our friends on the roof and see what happens," Evangeline said. "I've never caught the murder show yet, so I still can't figure out what causes it to happen."

"Good luck," Yugi said.

"And be careful," Téa added.

"Mokuba, I want you to stay down here," Seto said, to no one's surprise.

Mokuba sighed. "Okay. . . ." He had to admit, he didn't feel much like watching a death scene unfold that had probably happened in the past and involved Lector's ancestors. For once, he was alright with staying behind.

"I'm sure we can find something helpful to do," Marik said. "Maybe we can go back to that room and see if there's anything we missed. . . . Or we could stay here with Yugi," he added, as Mokuba cringed at the thought of going to where the ghost had been sitting on the bed.

"You know, I just thought of something else," Crump spoke up. "There might be all kinds of proof of stuff in the North wing, especially if those ghosts really are Germaines or something."

Angelique sighed. "Yes, but what good is that if we can't get in there?"

"Maybe you could try to get in there and see if they would like you?" Crump suggested.

"Well, it didn't seem to make any difference when I was there before," Angelique pointed out.

"Yeah, but you were with all of us," Crump said. "Maybe if you go stand in the doorway by yourself and talk to them or something, you'll get a positive response, like we finally did in the upstairs hall!"

Angelique sighed. "Well, it's worth a try, I guess." She walked across the living room and took out her set of keys. Soon she had the double-doors to the North wing unlocked, and as she opened them, cold air gushed out. The encyclopedia on Yugi's lap blew ahead several pages.

". . . Well, that was spooky," David gulped. He stood near Duke and Serenity, hoping to steel himself for anything that might come out. But as usual, the ghosts wanted to stay in and for everyone else to stay out.

Evangeline stood near the doors, tense. She wasn't sure she liked this. The only reason she hadn't protested was because they were assuming Gozaburo had been responsible for all the cruel and dangerous behavior in the house, while the North wing ghosts had done nothing either way.

"Hello?" Angelique quavered. She took several steps forward. "I . . . I'm Angelique Germaine. Are . . . are any of you Germaines?"

Everyone waited with baited breath. There was no verbal or visual response, but Angelique seemed to relax after a moment.

"You figure it's safe?" Crump asked.

"Well, I don't feel that extreme sense of being unwelcome," Angelique said slowly. "Maybe if I go in alone, they'll let me look around. . . ."

"Be careful," Evangeline said in concern.

Yugi bit his lip as Angelique carefully advanced into the North wing. "Someone had better stay nearby, just in case," he said.

"Well, my group was going to go to the roof, but I hate to leave with Angelique in there," Evangeline worried.

"We'll make sure she's okay," Yugi promised. "You guys really should check out the roof. You could stay, though."

"Sure," Crump said. "We've been up there before. We know our way around!"

"But you'll need the keys," Evangeline pointed out. "Alright, I'll come with you. But everyone down here, please stay alert!"

"You can count on us," Tristan vowed with a smile.

xxxx

Nesbitt was tense on the drive back to Adele's house. And since he was tense, he knew it must be a thousand times worse for Lector.

". . . It's strange," he finally said uncomfortably. "Every time we come to New Orleans, it seems like there's always some new heartbreak for you regarding your family. But . . . it also seems like a lot of our major milestones in growing closer happen out here too."

Lector had to smile. "That's true," he said. "It was here that we first met, although we didn't even realize who each other was until recently. And it was here that you first showed just how deeply you care when you thought you'd lost me." His eyes flickered. "It would be impossible for me not to gravitate to you after that heartbreaking display, especially after what my biological family did to me."

"Yeah," Nesbitt said slowly.

"And we already discussed what happened when Gozaburo tried and failed to make you forget me," Lector continued.

"Then we also fought together to defeat Darcy and Caroline Mason the last time we were here," Nesbitt remembered.

"I look forward to how we might end up bonding even more this time," Lector said. "But I pray it won't come with either of us being hurt again."

"You've already been hurt again," Nesbitt growled.

Lector sighed. "I know."

They came to attention as Joey stopped near the magnolia tree where they had left Yami Bakura. The former thief soon emerged in his other form, but by now everyone was used to him switching back and forth and no one batted an eye.

"So what's the deal?" Joey asked.

"Adele is still trying to keep her mother from going to the prison," Yami Bakura said. "But she is quite insistent that she's going."

Atem frowned. "She could do a great deal of damage there. If she puts her husband under a spell, the trouble might not stop there. They might both start putting the guards under spells in order to be able to leave, and then the other prisoners might stage a jailbreak!"

Lector stared in horror. "We can't let any of that happen!" he exclaimed. "What if that's even what this madman wants? All of this nonsense about recruiting people to work for him and promising them their deepest desires might just be a smokescreen. We know he wants the elemental rings. What if he also wants to cause a jailbreak? Maybe he wants to free a specific person from prison!"

"Dr. Raven," Nesbitt snarled.

"Or what if the person behind all this actually is Dr. Raven?" Atem suggested. "We have only assumed he doesn't still possess his magic powers since his arrest. What if he's been biding his time until now and has been carefully planning this entire scheme in order to get out of prison?"

"Oh man!" Joey slapped his face. "So now we've gotta stop this part of the plan from going through, right?!"

Atem nodded. "Hopefully it will draw out whoever is doing this, Dr. Raven or otherwise. But I'm sure Mrs. Leichter isn't the only person in town with a loved one in prison. Perhaps he has caught other such victims in his web. Just in case one or more of them are stopped, others can step in and take over!"

Yami Bakura growled. "Then someone should monitor the prison regardless."

Joey suddenly looked awkward. "So . . . is there a prison in the city?"

"Not the one we want," Lector said. "My father is being held at the state penitentiary, 135 miles from here."

"Oh great," Joey sighed. "It'll take more than two hours to get there!"

"Not if we had a dragon to fly on so we could take a more direct route," Nesbitt said.

"But we can't summon the Blue-Eyes White Dragon or our Five-Headed Dragon unless we're all together," Lector reminded him.

"Yeah, but what about Berserk Dragon?" Nesbitt held out his phone. The latest picture taken was the page from the spellbook to summon the beast. "I thought this might be important sometime, so I snapped a shot of it. . . ."

Lector had to smile. "Oh Nesbitt. . . ."

Yami Bakura leaned in the window to look. "But can you even recite the spell properly?" he frowned.

"I don't know," Lector admitted. "If I can't, I suppose we could try calling Evangeline and have her read it over the speaker."

"And who'll be goin' out there?" Joey wondered. "If you and Nesbitt need to keep a low profile, it can't be you guys."

"I'll go," Yami Bakura said.

"And I'd better come with you," Atem said. "If there's suddenly an outbreak at the prison of people under this mad spell, it will take more than one person to combat it."

"No kidding," Joey cringed.

"And we'll stay here to monitor this situation," Nesbitt said.

"But it'll all be a moot point if we can't get this thing to work," Lector pointed out. He drew a shaking breath and took Nesbitt's phone to study the page more closely. He had never embraced this part of his family heritage, nor had he wanted to. But this . . . this wasn't the same as the _vodun_ his mother had tried to teach him. This involved Duel Monsters, or one in particular. It was something he could get behind a lot more easily. And right now, it looked like something he needed to do.

"Can you really pronounce that stuff?" Joey asked.

"I can't fully translate it into English like Evangeline can, but I believe I know how to pronounce the Haitian Creole words," Lector said. He couldn't delay any longer. He started to speak the words aloud.

At first nothing happened. But the deeper he got into the recitation, the more the clouds in the sky above them began to swirl and change shape. Soon there was a vortex twisting in space, and then came a roar as the Berserk Dragon flew out of the portal and landed in front of the car.

Lector and Nesbitt both sat and gawked. Even knowing the likely outcome, it didn't take away their shock at seeing the creature appear.

". . . It really worked," Joey gasped. ". . . Do you think anyone noticed?"

"I don't know or care," Yami Bakura grunted. He walked around to the beast and it stared at him, growling low in its throat. Clearly it wasn't sure whether to trust this stranger or not.

Lector got out of the car. "He's with me," he said. "I am the one who called you here. Please, take this man wherever he needs to go!"

The dragon looked at Lector for a long moment and growled again, softer, more agreeable. It lowered itself to allow Yami Bakura and then Atem to climb up.

"Thank you," Atem said. "If we're right about what's being planned, I pray we're not too late!"

"We had better not be," Yami Bakura growled.

Lector, Nesbitt, and Joey all watched as the Berserk Dragon took flight. Joey shook his head in disbelief. "Man. . . ."

Nesbitt looked to Lector. "Are you alright? I . . . know that wasn't easy for you. . . ."

Lector sighed but nodded. "Yes. . . . I think so. But I pray I won't have to do anything like that again."

Nesbitt laid a hand on his shoulder.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

The third floor and the attic still felt eerie when Evangeline's group went up to access the roof. The watching ghosts were everywhere; it didn't feel like they were being followed, so there was obviously more than one.

Crump shuddered. "Boy, I hope Lector and Nesbitt are having some success with stuff. . . ." His phone dinged and he looked down at it. "Lector summoned the Berserk Dragon?!"

"Hmm." Mai smirked a bit. "I wonder what Joey thought of that."

"Apparently they're going to have quite a story to tell us," Gansley said. "Hopefully we'll have one as well."

They reached the door to the roof and Evangeline unlocked it. As they trouped outside onto the widow's walk, the large moon above them cast its yellow pallor across the space. Then a cloud floated in front of it and partially obscured the view.

"That is pretty creepy," Crump gulped.

"I can feel something is up here," Johnson shuddered, adjusting his glasses.

"It's different than when Nesbitt and I were up here before, in the daytime," Gansley agreed.

"We must have woke up every ghost in the place by guessing at their real identities," Evangeline said.

"Speaking of every ghost, is that siren still in the pool?" Crump asked.

Evangeline made a face. "Yes. The priest tried all kinds of exorcisms, and it tricked him into thinking it had left, but Angelique and I saw and heard it a few nights ago."

"Oh great," Crump scowled.

"On the other hand, what if he did remove it and one of the other ghosts took its place?" Gansley suggested.

"That's . . . not good." David frowned. "Why would it do that? And could the siren's powers just be passed on like that?"

"I don't even know," Evangeline said wearily. "I suppose reading up about the things wouldn't help much, since ours doesn't seem to follow the standard rules of mythology too well."

Duke looked to Gansley. "Have you tried reading any more of those letters you found? There might be some clues in there. About the ghosts in general, I mean, not the siren."

"I've been glancing over them, but mostly they're the unhelpful letters of people seemingly very much in love," Gansley grunted. "I haven't found any clues as to what happened between the families or why. Nor have I learned who really owned this house."

"And who knows if those arguing ghosts will really show up tonight," Evangeline sighed. ". . . Oh!"

Everyone followed her stare. The translucent figures were indeed appearing, acting out their silent argument as they became more and more animated and angry.

"Can anybody make out what they're saying?" Crump wondered.

"I can lip-read some," David said. "But . . . I don't think they're talking in English."

"It's Haitian Creole," Evangeline confirmed. "But I'm not a lip-reader and I can only pick up a word here and there." She shivered. Knowing what was coming, it was impossible not to be at least a little chilled.

"Do you think these really are the real ghosts?" Serenity whispered. "I've heard about residual energy, which is . . . the memory of the bad thing that happened, I guess? It's what some people use to explain why some ghosts do the same thing over and over when they come." She stared in horror as the argument continued to escalate, but she stood her ground. She wouldn't turn away; she would watch this through to the end.

"That just sounds nuts to think that energy could linger on and form the shapes of the people and act out what happened in the past again and again," Crump snorted. "That's crazier than if it was the ghosts themselves!"

Seto looked like he was in complete agreement.

"There are a lot of things in this world we can't explain," Evangeline said softly. "I've never understood why the ghosts would want to act out the past so much. Residual energy makes sense to me."

The female spectre abruptly shoved the man against the railing. He fell through with a silent scream. Serenity screamed aloud.

Duke drew a firm arm around her. The woman was just staring, stunned, not really believing what had just happened.

Crump looked over the railing. "His body's down there!" he exclaimed. "He looks all broken!"

The scene faded as suddenly as it had begun. The group's feelings couldn't fade as easily.

". . . She definitely didn't mean to kill him," Johnson said. "I could tell in her eyes."

Crump shuddered. He fully agreed. That look reminded him of how Nesbitt had looked when he had snapped out of Yami Marik's mind-control to the realization that he had badly hurt Lector.

Serenity couldn't refrain from crying. "That was horrible," she choked out. "Those poor people! And to think it really happened!"

David frowned. He definitely agreed with Serenity's assessment. If she hadn't decided to go on the roof, he doubted he or Duke would have wanted to go ahead with it.

Duke kept his arm around Serenity. "Well, what do we do now?" he wondered. "We still don't even know who those people were. We're only assuming they're the ones in the wedding invitation."

"It was probably them," Evangeline said. "It all makes so much sense." She turned away, chilled as well. "We know one more thing than we did before—the killing was absolutely an accident. That's most likely something the families never believed, or the Germaines, at least."

"Yeah, and apparently the bad feelings continue even after death," Crump said. "They're all livin' in the same house, and the truth has probably been out for ages, but the Germaines still hate the Leichters! So what good does learning this info really do?"

"I don't know, but I'm sure it'll help somewhere down the line," Evangeline said quietly. "For now we'd better hurry back downstairs and see how Angelique's faring in the North wing."

Everyone concurred, and they made their way to the door leading into the attic. Crump and Johnson both looked to Gansley in concern.

"You didn't say anything about what we saw, Gansley," Crump said. "Are you okay?"

Gansley sighed and shook his head. "As Lector and Nesbitt have said at times, what is there to say? What we saw was tragic. We all know this."

"Yeah, but . . . it really reminded you of something, didn't it?" Crump said.

"As I'm sure it did for you two," Gansley grunted.

"Poor Nesbitt and Lector," Johnson said. "I'm glad they weren't here to see it. . . ."

"But we'll havta tell them what we saw, right?" Crump frowned.

"They'll want to know," Gansley agreed. "And they should know." He sighed. "But I'm sure it will bring back painful memories for them."

"I hope they're okay where they are," Crump said. "Especially with all this portal-opening and the bad guy wanting to do some magic-stealing."

"The Pharaoh and Yami Bakura are the ones going into the most dangerous part of the fray," Gansley said. "Hopefully Lector and Nesbitt are keeping a low profile."

"Only what if Dr. Raven or whoever is behind this knows that the Berserk Dragon is the Leichter family's protector?" Johnson said in concern. "If he sees it in the sky, he'll know someone in the family summoned it."

"That's true," Evangeline said. "Although he won't know who summoned it, or from where. He might think it was me again."

Everyone was relieved that at least the ghosts didn't try to warp the appearance of the attic or the third floor and trap them there. They made it down to the ground floor without incident.

"What's happening here?" Serenity asked. "Has Angelique come out yet?"

"She's still in there," Téa worriedly replied. She was standing at the double doors, looking through to the North wing.

"It seems like she's okay, though," Mokuba said. "She's going from room to room." He turned to face the returning group. "Hey, Seto, everyone. . . . How was the roof?"

"Full of the past," Seto scowled.

"In other words, the ghosts came out," Crump said. He and most of the others began explaining what had happened, while the others listened in stunned and sickened shock.

"I'm glad I wasn't there," Mokuba said with a shudder. "It sounds awful."

"And it's a good thing Joey wasn't there," Tristan said.

"It's gonna take a long time before I forget that, let me tell you," Crump said. "I hope Lector and Nesbitt aren't running into creepy stuff."

"They probably are," Seto said.

"And all we can do is sit here and wait," Téa bemoaned.

"I haven't found any trace of that peridot ring, either," Yugi sighed. "Maybe it really is just a fake that doesn't have any magic properties."

"We can hope," Gansley grunted. "When Yami Bakura returns, perhaps he can scan it with his Infinity Ring and see if it turns up any magic properties."

"I hope he doesn't run into any trouble at the state prison," Bakura worried. He held Oreo close as she meowed.

"Yeah," Yugi said softly. "Atem too. . . ."

"They'll be okay," Téa tried to assure him. All the while, she was desperately hoping to believe that herself. With them, something could always go wrong . . . and it usually did. On the other hand, friendship and love had always pulled them all through it . . . but would that help Atem and Yami Bakura if they ran into trouble? That was hardly their relationship. They were allies at best.

From Yugi's eyes, he was thinking the same thing. But he tried to smile. "Y-Yeah. . . . I'm sure they will be. . . ." He sighed and looked back to the book. "Meanwhile, I still have my own job to do."

"Are you okay, kid?" Crump asked.

Yugi started. "I'm fine. I guess I just . . . well, sometimes I wish I had a magical object so I could be more helpful. I mean, I'm supposed to be the leader now, but I don't even have one! Sometimes I feel so useless." He looked down at the book.

"Are you serious?!" Tristan exclaimed.

"Yugi, you're never useless!" Téa insisted.

Gansley and Crump looked at each other. Finally Gansley sat down next to Yugi. "Having magical objects isn't that enjoyable, honestly," he said.

"Yeah!" Crump added. "You know how Galadriel told Frodo that to be a Ringbearer is to be alone? Well, that's kinda how it is. I mean, sure we've got the support of everybody and all, but they can't really understand what it's like to actually have the responsibility of always knowing you've gotta be ready to save the world because you've got one of these magical objects of protection." He held out his ring.

"I guess," Yugi said slowly. "But with you guys, I guess you've also only seen the bad side of having the rings. When I shared the Millennium Puzzle with Atem, it was hard sometimes, but it was also pretty awesome. I finally felt helpful and useful for the first time in my life. And bonding with Atem led to me gaining more confidence and bonding more with Téa and making new friends."

"You definitely had a different experience than we have had," Gansley agreed. "There are so many conditions for use on our rings that it's sometimes difficult for us to even be that helpful with them."

"Not to mention that we're hardly ever able to use them to protect each other," Johnson said.

"Yeah! So a lot of times it feels like, what's the use of them?" Crump added.

"I think there's more to your rings than meets the eye," Yugi said. "Sometimes you've been able to use them in ways you didn't think you were allowed to. So I think that you have a lot more power to unlock with them, just like Yami Bakura does with his Infinity Ring."

"Could be, I guess," Crump said. "But anyway, what we're tryin' to say is that you shouldn't be so eager to get an object again, or to feel like having one is the only way you can be helpful. The people with objects aren't always the most important members of a group."

"That's right," Tristan said firmly.

"Everybody is important in their own ways," Téa said. "Yugi, we were all so devastated when you were . . . dead. . . ." She swallowed hard.

"I know," Yugi said quietly. "I know I'm important to everyone. But I still wish I could do more right now than go through this book. It feels like a lost cause anyway. I don't think the peridot ring is in here."

"I'm sure there will be a lot more to do later," Gansley said.

"No kidding," Crump said. "We're nowhere near finished with this crazy mystery!"

"That's true." Yugi smiled a bit. "Thanks for trying to cheer me up, everyone."

"Sure," Crump said, and patted Yugi on the shoulder.

xxxx

Lector sighed as the Berserk Dragon flew off into the night sky. "Well . . . let's just hope it gets there in time," he said. This all still felt so surreal. He could hardly believe he had really recited the spell to summon the beast and it had actually obeyed him. Under other circumstances, before all of this mess had happened, his mother would have been so proud of him. He wasn't sure whether he was proud or not. But at least he hoped it would help.

"Yeah, no kidding," Joey said. ". . . And your family's coming! You'd better get back in the car if you don't want them to see you!"

Lector dove into the backseat and ducked down. Nesbitt was right on his heels. Joey quickly got back in the driver's seat to watch. The car was half-hidden by the huge tree, so he hoped Mrs. Leichter wouldn't so much as glance their way.

"We have to hurry now," she said as she lightly pushed Adele onto the porch. "Your father needs my help."

"But Mother, he already admitted he wronged Démas," Adele protested. At her side, Gabriel looked up worriedly.

"He admitted that, but he never tries to reconcile," Mrs. Leichter said. "That's why we have to go!"

"But it's not gonna mean anything if he doesn't really wanna do it," Gabriel said.

"My spell will literally change his heart so he _will_ want to do it," Mrs. Leichter said.

"And what about Phillipe, Mother?" Adele frowned. By now they were down the steps and to her car. "You can't just make his feelings change."

"I can and I will!" Mrs. Leichter insisted. "But we'll see about your father first. Then everyone else will fall into line."

Adele folded her arms. "Not if I refuse to drive you. You walked here, Mother, but you can't walk all the way to the prison."

"No, but I can go back for my own car," Mrs. Leichter said. "Adele, earlier you said we'd go once Gabriel came back! Now you're going back on your word!"

"I just meant to go for a normal visit," Adele said. "I don't want to go if you're going to cause trouble, Mother. That could get all of us in trouble with the law!"

"Not that she's not right, but she shouldn't have humored your mother in the first place," Nesbitt grunted.

". . . Suddenly I just realized something," Lector exclaimed. "What about Marie?! She must have been in the house when all this madness started, so she should have been the first person Mother spelled. But if she was, it seems like she would have been along for all of this nonsense."

Nesbitt frowned. "What do you think happened?"

"I honestly don't have any idea," Lector said. "Maybe she hid from Mother and escaped. But you'd think she'd want to warn her other siblings if that were the case."

"Maybe she went to college?" Nesbitt suggested with a shrug.

"I suppose she could have been taking some classes," Lector mused. "She still lives at home, but that doesn't mean she really was there at the time. Although Mother hasn't even talked about Marie once. She's been talking about everyone else instead."

"That's kinda weird," Joey frowned. "I didn't even notice that until now."

"There has to be some kind of significance to it, but I can't imagine what," Lector said.

"Well, Adele's still insisting she's not gonna drive her to the prison," Joey said. "Do you think she's gonna start walking home to get her car?"

". . . It looks more like she's going to start trying to spell Adele again!" Lector exclaimed. He threw open the door and ran out. "Mother, stop!"

Nesbitt dashed out after him.

Mrs. Leichter turned to face them just as she started to chant. "Démas, we already went over this," she frowned. "You know I have to do this! Adele won't cooperate and drive me to the prison!"

"I don't want you to do it!" Lector insisted. "I want the family to come to me with all their hearts, not because they were spelled into coming! You really don't think they ever will, do you?!"

"Adele has, but I know the others won't," Mrs. Leichter said.

"What about Marie?" Lector asked. "Where is she, Mother?"

"Marie?" Mrs. Leichter's eyes flickered and she tilted her head, staring off into the distance. "I . . . don't know. . . ."

"She wasn't at the house?" Lector persisted.

"She's getting married," Mrs. Leichter said. "She was probably with her man. . . ."

Lector stared. "No one mentioned this!"

"They don't know," Mrs. Leichter shrugged.

Nesbitt growled. "That's why you wanted Lector's belongings out of the cabin, isn't it?!" he demanded. "They're moving into it when they get married!"

"Yes," Mrs. Leichter said. "That's exactly right."

Lector shook himself out of his shock. "That still doesn't explain why you don't want to spell her."

". . . I'm not sure either," Mrs. Leichter said. "It didn't occur to me."

Nesbitt frowned. "Who is she marrying?!"

"An older man," Mrs. Leichter said. "Francoise Dove."

"Dove?!" Joey echoed from the car. "Wasn't Raven weird enough?!"

Lector looked back and forth between Joey and Nesbitt. A new thought was taking shape in his mind. What if Marie's fiancé was the one behind the madness? That could explain why Marie hadn't been spelled. And what if _Dove_ was just a false name, as _Raven_ was? What if the fact of them both using bird names even meant there was some connection between them?

"Where does he live?" he finally asked.

"I'll take you there," Mrs. Leichter volunteered. "But he might be on a date with Marie right now. . . ."

"Let's try anyway," Nesbitt insisted.

Adele just stood in bewilderment. "What's going on around here?!" she exclaimed.

"When I know, I'll tell you," Lector promised. "For now, why don't you and Gabriel go inside?"

"Fine with me," Adele sighed. She started to steer Gabriel towards the house.

The boy turned back. "Will I get to see you while you're here, Uncle Démas?" he asked.

Lector smiled a bit. "I'll make sure to come by especially to see you," he promised. Gabriel was one of the few people in his family who had never turned against him. He certainly wanted to honor that and further their relationship.

Nesbitt walked close to Lector as they headed back to the car. "What really is going on?" he grunted.

"Let's hope we can find out," Lector said, keeping his voice low. "I'm wondering if there's more to Marie's fiancé than meets the eye. And I'm wondering if he's not on the up and up. He could be the villain we're looking for."

"But if he's doing this, why?" Nesbitt frowned. "And is she in it with him?"

"Maybe he's trying to get Dr. Raven out of prison, like we were thinking," Lector said. "And maybe Marie has no idea. Either that or he already spelled her himself so she wouldn't be a problem."

"Ugh." Nesbitt scowled. "This mess just keeps getting more bizarre. Are you going to tell the others?"

"I'll send a quick text and ask for Mr. Kaiba to start collecting information on Francoise Dove," Lector said. "But chances are that isn't his real name." He took out his phone.

"Of course not," Nesbitt muttered. "Things would never be that easy."

xxxx

Seto stared at the incoming text in disbelief. "Francoise Dove?!"

Mokuba leaned over to look too. "That's a pretty weird name."

"Lector doesn't think it's for real. But whatever; we'll see what comes up." Seto started typing into his laptop.

"So why is Lector asking about a guy named that?!" Tristan asked.

"He says it's his sister Marie's fiancé," Seto said.

Evangeline, who had been standing near the doorway into the North wing, spun around in disbelief. "Marie isn't getting married," she protested.

"Apparently Lector's mother is the only one who knows," Seto grunted. "Who knows why." He came to attention as the search results loaded. "The only thing coming up is a short article about him claiming to be the son of a merchant from Baton Rouge."

Mokuba stared at it. "And the dad wasn't available for comment?!"

"It sounds like a scam to me," Mai said, tossing her hair.

"Only it sounds like such an obvious scam that either he's a complete amateur . . . or it's for real," Seto grunted. "I'm going to connect with my supercomputer and see what she can dig up that a search engine can't."

"Works for me," Tristan said.

"Does he say if they're all okay?" Crump asked.

"No, but I'm sure he would have said if they weren't," Seto pointed out.

"Yeah," Crump said slowly. "But with all the nutty stuff going on, it's nice to actually see it said that they are."

Serenity definitely agreed with that.

xxxx

Atem was tense on the dragon ride. The creature seemed to know where to go, somehow, but it was still taking far too long to suit him. And it was impossible not to be noticed; people were looking up and pointing wherever they went.

"We're not keeping a low profile," he frowned.

Yami Bakura grunted. "It's not like a dragon has a cloaking device. They'll just have to deal with it."

"They might deal with it by sending out the military!" Atem exclaimed. "They might think we're some kind of enemy aircraft!"

"They'd soon learn otherwise," Yami Bakura shot back. ". . . Is that the prison there?"

Atem looked down at the series of whitish-gray buildings surrounded by a high gate. "It looks like it. And . . . it looks like people are running around. Oh no! We're probably too late!"

The Berserk Dragon dipped lower. Yami Bakura frowned at the scene before them. "It appears that it's only guards running around. I don't see any escaped prisoners. They couldn't have all vanished that quickly."

"Well, something obviously happened," Atem insisted. "I hope Lector can keep his mother from coming out here!"

The dragon landed and the two men got off, heading for the main gate. A guard stationed there came to attention, pointing his gun at them. "State your business!" he barked.

Atem immediately decided he should take charge. "We're . . . friends of Démas Lector," he explained. "We came to see if everything was alright with his father."

"What makes you think everything wouldn't be alright?" the guard countered.

"We heard that enemies of his might be plotting against him," Yami Bakura smoothly said.

The guard frowned, studying them as he tried to determine whether or not they were telling the truth. But at last he seemed satisfied and he nodded, lowering his weapon. "You could say that," he said.

"Is something wrong here?" Atem asked. His stomach was starting to twist in knots.

"You bet there is!" the guard exclaimed. "That nut who called himself Dr. Raven busted out tonight . . . and he took Mr. Leichter as a hostage!"

Neither of them had been expecting that.

"What?!" Yami Bakura exclaimed.

"Are you positive?!" Atem demanded. "Why would he do that?!"

"To make sure everybody knows he means business," the guard said. "They're arch-enemies and all that. We already know Raven would be willing to do anything to get even with Mr. Leichter and his whole family. Taking the guy hostage is his way of ensuring he gets what he wants!"

"And what's that?" Atem's heart was growing heavier. This was the last thing he wanted to tell poor Lector. A man could only take so much stress before he snapped. He didn't know how on Earth Lector had held it together for as long as he had.

"He hasn't made his demands yet, but you can be sure he will," the guard said. "We're trying to find what path he took, but all the vans are here and no one's gone over the wall!"

"Then he must have used voodoo to teleport out," Yami Bakura frowned.

"If he could do that, he would have done it before," the guard scoffed.

"Perhaps he couldn't do it before," Yami Bakura retorted. "Did he have any visitors tonight?"

"He never has any visitors except his lawyer," the guard insisted. ". . . Oh wait. He did have a visit today from Marcel Germaine, some second cousin of his or something."

"Marcel Germaine!?" Atem stared. "He surely wouldn't have helped him escape; he's on our side!"

"Can you be sure, Pharaoh?" Yami Bakura grunted.

"Pharaoh?!" The guard looked back and forth between them. "Is that some kind of a joke?!"

Yami Bakura sneered. "It's hardly your business. But yes, he resembles a Pharaoh depicted on an ancient Egyptian tablet. Hence, the nickname _Pharaoh_."

Atem facepalmed. "Bakura . . ."

Yami Bakura just looked further amused. "I didn't say anything that isn't true."

"Well, whatever." The guard turned away. "I've told you all I can. You should both be on your way."

"You didn't say how Dr. Raven escaped from his cell and took his hostage," Atem said.

"I can't explain that," the guard said. "It was during mealtime. The lights went out, and when they came on again, both Raven and Mr. Leichter were gone!"

Atem stared. "Oh no. . . ."

"And based on that, you determined that Raven disappeared and took a hostage?" Yami Bakura shot back. "What if it was just the opposite? Or what if both of them were taken by a third party, a visitor or an intruder?"

"Raven has made threats before to break out and take Mr. Leichter hostage," the guard said. "Right now, that's the most likely scenario."

Yami Bakura snarled. "Well, like it or not, now we have some unpleasant phone calls and texts to make." He took out his phone.

Feeling almost dazed and confused, Atem followed suit. What could have happened? How had it happened? Why wouldn't Dr. Raven have done it before, if he had the power all along? Why had Marcel Germaine visited him?

So many questions in need of answers.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

The ride to Francoise Dove's house was tense. Lector was silent, trying to work out in his mind what was happening and why it was happening and if it could really be true that Marie's fiancé was behind everything. And what about Marie herself? He still wasn't sure if she would willingly participate, although he could scarcely believe she would help release Dr. Raven from prison.

". . . Crump told me recently that the only family he could think of that was worse off than mine is Joseph's, from the Old Testament in the Bible." Lector sighed and leaned back in the seat.

Nesbitt grunted. "He's probably right."

Lector rubbed his eyes. "My father would read that story and I would wonder how Joseph could ever forgive his brothers for doing something so horrible to him. I also wondered how the brothers could have done it."

"And now?" Nesbitt asked.

"Now . . . I just don't know," Lector said. "I certainly know now that it's not impossible for family to behave as Joseph's brothers did. And I can understand how he still loved them; I didn't hate my family after they were so cruel to me. I just felt shattered. But I don't trust them."

"I'm sure Joseph didn't either," Nesbitt grunted. "And he pulled all those tricks on them to mess with their minds in Egypt. Maybe he didn't forgive them right away."

"You think he did that out of revenge or vengeance?" Lector asked.

Nesbitt shrugged. "The Bible didn't really say what he was feeling, did it? He just said he was doing it to make them really remember what they did to him. Or that's what I remember anyway. I don't see how he could have forgiven them right away. Almost all of them tried to murder him! And then that other one still wanted him gone, even if he didn't want to kill him. There was only that younger brother who really cared about him, like Evangeline with you."

"Well, and his father certainly cared," Lector reminded him.

"Yeah," Nesbitt conceded. "But most of the family was a mess."

Lector stared off into the distance. "I don't know that I feel vengeful towards my family, but part of me does wish they could understand what they did to me. Part of me even thinks that maybe if Marie's fiancé is the enemy we're after and she doesn't realize it, that would be a wake-up call to her. I'm not even sure how I would feel if that happened. I wanted Mr. Kaiba to know what it felt like to be betrayed, but when it's my own sister, I don't know if I feel the same way or not."

"I still don't think it was wrong to want to teach Kaiba a lesson," Nesbitt said. ". . . But we got so caught up in our anger and hate that we lost ourselves and did things we never should have." He looked away, clenching a fist.

"Exactly," Lector said. "When is it justice and when is it vengeance? I've heard Yami Bakura say that sometimes there's not really much difference between the two. I have believed that myself, and I remember us talking about it. I don't know what I think now. . . ."

"I'm not the best person to ask," Nesbitt uncomfortably replied.

"You said it yourself," Joey spoke up. "You guys lost yourselves. That's how you know you went too far."

"So if we want vengeance and we haven't lost ourselves, that's alright?" Nesbitt deadpanned.

"Or would we want vengeance at all if we haven't lost ourselves?" Lector mused.

"Man, I don't know," Joey said. "But I do know that some people really do deserve justice. I mean, like the bad guys we go after. It's not like we can leave them roamin' free to conquer the world, you know? We've gotta take them down. But if we're full of hate doin' it, we're gonna be too mad to see straight and even take care of things right! We've gotta focus on the big picture, savin' the world and protecting them from these creeps." He sighed. "Of course, I'm one to talk. Everybody knows I flip out and feel like beating up on anybody I meet who's acting like a first-class jerk."

"I most certainly can understand that," Lector said. "Although I usually don't feel like brute force is the answer."

"That would be me," Nesbitt grunted.

"It's no different with _vodun_," Mrs. Leichter finally spoke from the front passenger seat. "We believe we must serve justice when there is an obvious wrongdoing being committed."

"Yeah, but you guys can make mistakes, like this creepy episode of _The Saint_ I caught where these voodoo guys were mad about one of their own being run down by a car, so they summon the guy's spirit to kill the guy driving the car. But the guy driving the car was a victim too—his brakes had been cut! So he didn't deserve to die!" Joey gripped the steering wheel. "Man, that was messed-up!"

"How did you even stay still to watch something that supernatural?" Nesbitt wondered.

". . . I turned it off after that scene," Joey confessed.

Lector sighed and ran a hand over his face. "Even without _vodun_, people taking vengeance or justice or whatever can make mistakes. I most certainly did."

Nesbitt looked away. He still felt badly at times about his own vengeful rampage in Noa's world.

Joey came to a stop in front of a well-kempt middle-class house. "Well, here we are," he announced. "The lights are on, so somebody must be home."

Everyone quickly got out of the car. At the same moment, three of the group's phones dinged with incoming messages. Lector, Nesbitt, and Joey all immediately turned their attention to the screens.

"Oh great!" Joey cried. "Atem says something's gone wrong but it's too complicated to explain right now?!"

"And they'll tell us when they come back," Nesbitt frowned. "What was the point of saying anything at all if he was going to be so cryptic about it?"

"I suppose so we'll be aware something has gone wrong," Lector said.

Mrs. Leichter was already on the porch, caring little for the phone messages. She rang the bell and then promptly knocked as well, before nervously rocking back on her feet. By the time Lector and the rest caught up with her, a handsome dark-skinned man in his late thirties was opening the front door.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

"Are you Francoise Dove?" Lector asked in turn.

"Yes." Francoise pushed his top hat back on his head and folded his arms. "Why?"

"I'm Démas Lector," Lector said, "and my mother tells me you're going to marry my sister Marie."

"Oh! Marie's family, of course." Francoise's eyes glimmered with recognition. "Yes, we're planning to be married as soon as possible."

"Is that why you haven't bothered to let most of the family know?" Nesbitt grunted. "You don't want a fancy wedding?"

"Er . . . no, actually." Now Francoise looked embarrassed. "To tell you the truth, that was Marie's idea."

"Why?!" Nesbitt demanded.

"Well . . ." Francoise shifted, looked to Lector, and then away.

". . . Because of me?" Lector realized with a sinking heart.

"She just wanted it kept secret until she could figure out what to do about telling you," Francoise said. "She said she personally wanted you there, but she was afraid it would tear the whole family apart on our special day."

"I would have known it would cause trouble for me to be there," Lector stiffly told him.

"And you wouldn't come?" Francoise perked up a bit.

"I don't know," Lector said. "I personally would want to if Marie actually wanted me there, but I wouldn't want to be the cause of ruining her wedding with my presence." He tried to look over Francoise's shoulder. "Is Marie here with you? We're looking for her."

"Yes, she's here," Francoise replied. "I'll get her for you. Just a minute." Without inviting them in, he turned and walked deeper into the house.

"I don't like the guy," Joey immediately proclaimed.

"But Marie loves him." Mrs. Leichter looked and sounded far away. "That's all that matters."

"Not if the guy's a creep and she should stay away from him!" Joey shot back.

Nesbitt looked to Lector. "What do you think?"

"Oh . . . I'm not sure." Lector just looked tired and sad. "His manners could certainly be better."

Nesbitt peered into the living room through the open door. "His taste in decor leaves a lot to be desired."

Joey took one look and shrieked. "Yiiikes!"

Skulls were everywhere—on the back of the couch, the top of the bookcase, the end tables. . . . Candles were eerily lit around the darkened room, flickering and casting their glows in all directions. The shadows they created seemed especially unsettling in light of the macabre decorations.

"He's into _vodun_, isn't he?" Lector asked his mother.

"Yes," she said. "They've bonded a great deal over it."

"Ugh," Nesbitt grunted. It was only circumstantial, but it certainly added credence to the idea that Marie's fiancé might be behind the disasters in town.

Suddenly Francoise returned, with Marie in tow. "Here she is," he announced. "Your mother and brother came to see you, darling. Isn't that nice?"

"That's nice," Marie agreed.

Lector was chilled. Her voice was blank, as were her eyes. Normally they were a deep blue like his own, sparkling with life. Now they were glazed and empty.

"Marie, what's wrong?!" he demanded. "You're not well!"

"I'm not?" She looked to him. "Hello, Démas. Francoise told me you know we're getting married."

"Yes!" Lector exclaimed. "Mother told me." He looked to Francoise. "Did you do something to her?!"

Francoise flinched, looking affronted. "Of course not! I love her!"

"Don't you even notice she's acting like a zombie?!" Nesbitt cried.

"She's just tired." Francoise put an arm around her. "Isn't that right, Marie? Planning every detail of our wedding has been exhausting her. Who knew how many things could go wrong with something so simple?"

"That is _not_ mere exhaustion!" Lector boomed, pointing at Marie in mounting outrage. "Something is wrong with her! Our mother has been going around all evening trying to put the rest of the family under spells, but she ignored Marie for some reason. Why? Was that your doing?!"

"Yeah!" Joey exclaimed. "You tell him!"

"He'll just keep denying it," Nesbitt growled.

But instead, Francoise's lips curled in a cruel and entertained smirk. "Even if I was responsible, why would you care?" he said to Lector. "Marie has treated you poorly ever since your father turned against you."

"That doesn't mean I'll just stand by and let you turn her into some kind of brainwashed slave!" Lector snarled.

"Marie wants to be here. And she wants to marry me." Francoise laid his hands on her shoulders.

"That's right," Marie said. "I've never been happier than I am now."

"Then why don't you act happy?!" Nesbitt retorted. "Lector's right—something's wrong here!"

"You know what I think?" Francoise said. "I think Marie never should have rejected her brother here. He'd probably fight for her more than most of the rest of her family would."

"You're right," Nesbitt snarled. "And if you're the one he's going to fight, you'll have to take us both on."

"And I'm here too," Joey added. "If you really brainwashed your fiancée, you deserve anything we can dish out!"

Nesbitt looked to Mrs. Leichter. "Aren't you even upset by any of this?!" She had been standing silently, just watching the exchanges. She largely seemed pokerfaced as well.

"There must be another explanation," she said. "Francoise wouldn't hurt Marie. . . ."

"You're responsible for everything, aren't you?!" Lector cried. "You put our mother under her spell, and you're doing the same thing to who knows how many other people all over the city!"

Instead of looking insulted, Francoise just sneered. "Let's see you prove that."

"Oh, I'll prove it!" Lector vowed. "And you're going to be sorry when you have to pay for everything you've been doing to everyone!" He grabbed for Marie's wrist. "I'm taking my sister home."

Marie looked back at Francoise, as if asking whether it was alright.

"Go ahead," Francoise said, and Marie obediently walked to Lector's side. "I'll see you tomorrow, my love."

"Tomorrow," Marie repeated.

All three of the males were fuming as they headed back down the walkway to the car. Marie and Mrs. Leichter, meanwhile, both seemed varying levels of blank.

"So now what're we going to do?!" Nesbitt exclaimed.

"I don't know, but one way or another, we have to track all of this madness back to that man," Lector said. "He was deliberately mocking us! He's absolutely guilty and he thinks we can't catch him!"

"But we're gonna!" Joey vowed, slamming his fist into his palm. "Somehow!"

"Right now, after we take Mother and Marie home, we'd better go to Evangeline's and find out what went wrong with Atem and Yami Bakura's mission," Lector said.

Nesbitt dreaded that, especially when Atem hadn't wanted to reveal the problem in the text message. Whatever it was, was probably something that would bend Lector's patience and tolerance even more. And Nesbitt really did wonder how much more his poor friend could take.

xxxx

Lector sent a text message for Atem and Yami Bakura not to go back to Adele's house, but just to return to Evangeline's. When he and the others arrived, the Berserk Dragon was in the front yard. It roared a greeting.

"Hello," Lector said awkwardly, patting it as they walked by on their way to the porch. ". . . I still can hardly believe I summoned it here. . . ."

"Believe it," Nesbitt grunted. "We watched."

"I wonder if now I'm supposed to send it back or if it will just go back itself when it's done," Lector said. They reached the porch and he rang the doorbell.

"I guess you'll have to ask Evangeline if the spell already says something about that," Nesbitt said.

"Yes, I will," Lector mused.

The door opened and Evangeline was standing there. The worry in her eyes was eclipsed by her honest happiness to see her brother and two friends returning safely.

"Démas!" she beamed. "Mr. Nesbitt, Joey . . . ! Come in! How did things go?"

"It's a long story," Lector said. They all entered the house and the door was shut. "I don't think you're going to like it much. . . ."

Evangeline made a face. "Probably not. And Angelique's still going through the North wing." She shuddered. "I guess we must surely be right that those ghosts are Germaines, since they're not bothering her or scaring her so badly she feels she has to leave. . . ."

"Has she said whether she's found anything?" Nesbitt asked.

"She hasn't said. I guess she just wants to hurry and keep looking as long as the ghosts are hospitable. Who knows when they'll change their minds." Evangeline sighed.

"What about that whole goin' on the roof thing?" Joey wondered. "Did anybody do that?"

"Yes . . ." Evangeline said slowly.

"And we saw that the death was a complete accident," Crump added as he came over to the entryway. "Hey!" He grinned. "You're all okay!"

"Yeah," Nesbitt blinked.

"Well, let's all go in the living room and exchange stories and stuff," Crump said. "Atem and Yami Bakura were waiting to tell what they found out until you guys were here." He frowned. "But from the way they look, it must be a doozy."

Lector brought a hand to his forehead. "Oh no. . . ."

The tale the duo brought back from the prison definitely horrified everyone. Even Evangeline seemed disturbed.

"If Dr. Raven really took our father prisoner, then . . . he's probably coming after all of us," she said in horror.

"Then this truth you have uncovered about the calamity that started the feud might be of great help," Atem said.

"Yeah, only by now Raven's probably mostly mad because he got sent up the river," Crump said. "He probably doesn't even care about what started the feud!"

"But if we could convince the ghosts here of the truth, they might help protect us against him," Atem pointed out.

Gansley looked to Lector, who had grown extremely pale and hadn't spoken since the announcement had been made. "Are you alright?" he asked in concern.

"I . . . I don't know," Lector stammered. "Part of me thinks I shouldn't care. . . . Part of me thinks it serves my father right." He clenched a fist. "But . . . even after everything, I still don't want Dr. Raven to kill him. . . ."

Nesbitt growled and brought an arm around Lector's shoulders. Mokuba hugged him. Lector had to smile at both of their kindnesses.

"He's probably alive right now," Gansley said. "I doubt Raven would kill him right away."

"He'll probably want him to see the devastation he brings to the entire family first," Yami Bakura said.

"And how in the world did he disappear like he apparently did?!" Lector exclaimed. "Was it really _vodun_, or did he just manage to get around the security system while the lights were off?"

"It sounded like they weren't off long enough to enable an escape through normal means," Atem said.

"And _why_ would Marcel Germaine visit?!" Evangeline cried. "Nothing is making sense!"

"We're going to have to pay him a visit!" Yugi declared. "By now he's probably home and in bed, but we'll just have to wake him up!" He shut the encyclopedia with a thud. "Who knows how many lives are at stake!"

Lector thoroughly agreed. "Is there any way to find out how much longer Angelique might be?" he wondered. "Some of us should probably just go now."

"I'm here!" Angelique breathlessly hurried out of the North wing. "Thank you!" she called back to the ghosts before shutting and locking the double-doors.

"Well?" Evangeline stared at her friend. "Did you find anything?"

Angelique sighed. "I went through every room and looked for any kind of personally identifying information. I'm afraid all I found were first names. I did find some letters and journals, though, and the ghosts didn't act like I couldn't take them, so I brought them out and I'm going to go through them."

"That's great!" Téa exclaimed. "Can any of us help? . . . Or do you think the ghosts wouldn't want that?"

"It's hard to say," Angelique said. "I'd love some help, but maybe I'd better try on my own for now. What's happening out here?"

Atem and Yami Bakura repeated their message, much to Angelique's shock and fear.

"Oh no," she whispered. "I hoped Dr. Raven would be locked up for a long time and none of us would have to see him again. And for him to take Mr. Leichter, he must be planning something really bad to do to everyone involved with his arrest!"

Evangeline gripped her arms. "I can't bring myself to be too worried about Father," she said bitterly. "But I am worried about what might happen to all the rest of us."

"And I can't imagine why Marcel Germaine would visit Dr. Raven!" Angelique cried. "I want to go with you to talk to him!"

"You should come," Téa encouraged. "You can go through the letters and stuff when we get back."

Lector sighed. "And we haven't told how our meeting with Marie and her fiancé went," he said.

"Oh, that's right," Evangeline realized. "Well, what happened?"

"It's bad," Lector said. Together with Nesbitt and Joey, he explained what had happened at Francoise Dove's house.

"He was mind-controlling Marie?!" Téa gasped.

"That's horrible!" Serenity exclaimed.

"It's sick!" Mokuba cried indignantly.

"Well, we don't have any proof," Lector said wearily, "but the way he was smirking at us, he all but admitted it. I took Marie and Mother away from there and we got them home. They were still acting strangely when we were going to leave, so I called Adele and she and Gabriel are going to stay over for the night."

"Hmph." Evangeline folded her arms. "Marie deserves to know how it feels to have someone you love turn against you." But then she wavered and her shoulders slumped. "It sounds really disturbing to see her like that, though. . . ."

"It was," Lector said.

"Well, so what are we going to do about that creep?" Evangeline wondered. "He'll probably know we'll be watching him!"

"No doubt," Lector said. "But we'll have to try anyway. And we'll have to try to find out whatever information on him that we can."

Seto nodded. "I haven't learned much so far. Just a suspicious article. I'm trying to dig deeper."

"I'll go watch him," Yami Bakura said. "He doesn't know me."

Bakura bit his lip. "Be careful, Yami. . . . He sounds dangerous. . . ."

"And as we know, so am I," Yami Bakura grunted.

Soon Yami Bakura had commandeered the van to drive out to Francoise Dove's house, while some of the others set out to see Marcel Germaine. The rest, not quite sure what to do, stayed on the porch to watch the departures.

"Maybe we should stay here and keep looking for clues," Crump suggested.

"Or maybe we should try checking someplace like Dr. Raven's old store," Duke said. "Maybe he'd even go back there. Marcel Germaine said he had secret passages all over the place."

Joey gulped. "That place is creepy as heck! Even the cat got scared in there!"

Bakura certainly remembered. "Maybe I'll go with the group visiting Mr. Germaine," he said. "I don't want to let Oreo out of my sight with Dr. Raven at large, and that's true that I probably shouldn't take her to the shop."

"Sounds good to me," Tristan said.

"Well, I'm not afraid of an old voodoo shop," Mai said. "Come on, boys and girls. Let's go see if anything's happening there!" She headed towards another of the rented vehicles. The rest of the group hesitated, but trailed after her.

xxxx

Despite the late hour, the lights were still on at Marcel Germaine's house. Hoping that was a good sign, Angelique was the first out of the car and bounding up the walkway. The others hurried after her, catching up after she knocked on the door.

Marcel looked confused and worried as he opened the door. "Angelique! I'm glad you're safe," he greeted. "The prison called me about the jailbreak."

"They also said you visited Dr. Raven today," Angelique said. "Why would you do that?"

Marcel sighed. "He's just been so belligerent and unrepentant. I've written to him several times, but he's never answered. I went there today because I wanted to try talking to him in person. I didn't get anywhere with him."

"Do you suppose he could be responsible for the madness all over town today?" Atem wondered. "Or that maybe someone working with him is doing it?"

"I asked him about that," Marcel admitted. "Of course he denied any involvement and insisted he didn't have his powers anymore. But obviously that wasn't true. He probably is behind it, although the reason why escapes me. He wouldn't do it without a reason; he doesn't cause pain just for the sake of causing pain."

"So . . . you think he might go back to his shop?" Joey asked. "Some of us went over there to see what's happening."

Marcel stiffened. "They're doing what?!" Immediately he grabbed his jacket and stepped onto the porch. "We have to get over there right now!"

"Why?" Bakura exclaimed. "What's wrong?!"

Marcel hurried down the steps and over to his car. "There's an evil in that shop worse than even Dr. Raven," he said urgently. "Evangeline Leichter closed the building and hasn't been inside since the cases went to court, so she doesn't know. Dr. Raven made contracts with evil spirits to perform some of his cruelty. They're still in that shop, angry about the broken contracts. If a group of innocent people go in now, who knows what will happen to them!"


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

No one was very pleased to see Dr. Raven's voodoo shoppe again. It stood silent and dark on the otherwise friendly block, and even closed, it emanated an air of warning or even hatred. Evangeline scowled at it as she took her keys out of her bag.

"Well, it looks just as cheery as ever," she commented.

"Were you ever going to do anything more with the property?" Seto wondered. He certainly understood locking away a painful part of one's past, but to him, anything seemed more reasonable than ignoring a valuable piece of real estate—including tearing it down to start over.

"I don't know," Evangeline said. "I'm sure all of you feel that cold, unwelcome sensation. Everyone on the block knows something is wrong with this place and just stays away. I'm afraid if I try to rent it out again, or even to tear it down, one way or another the negative energy will permeate into the other buildings in the area. It seems better to keep it contained here. Or it did. I don't know what the right thing is anymore."

"I guess an exorcist wouldn't work?" Téa shuddered.

"I don't have a great deal of faith in them after what happened at the house," Evangeline said. "Plus I didn't like the thought of opening the place up over and over to let one in." Finally she found the right key and unlocked the door. "Be careful, everyone. I don't know what's going to happen in there."

An ice-cold breeze blasted the group as the door was pushed open.

". . . That's not helping to encourage me!" Crump yelped.

"I wish Yami Bakura was here," Serenity worried. "He'd probably know how to handle this."

"Maybe we should wait until he can come," David said.

"Well, we've got all six elemental rings here," Crump gulped. "You'd think that would be enough. Seems like we should be able to get 'em to work in a case like this. . . ."

"Nothing's going to get done if we just keep standing out here." Seto brushed past him and entered the store.

Looking at each other nervously, everyone else trouped in after him.

". . . Are those masks glowing?!" Crump screamed.

Duke flipped on the lights, his eyes showing his terror. But the tiki masks on the wall were still and definitely not glowing, just leering in their eerie manner as they always did. ". . . We're probably just letting our imagination run away with us," he said.

Gansley nodded. "Let's just spread out and look for any of the secret compartments we didn't find last time," he said.

"And just supposing we actually find Dr. Raven," Crump said. "What the heck do we do?! Blast him with all six rings all at once?!"

"That sounds logical to me," Nesbitt grunted.

"If we can get them to work," Lector reminded him.

The shop didn't warm up as they looked. If anything, it only grew more cold. The chill hung in the air wherever they went, but it seemed the strongest by the masks and by the skulls that decorated many of the bookcases and tables.

Serenity finally shivered. "I'm glad Joey didn't come. . . ."

"I wish _we_ hadn't!" Crump exclaimed.

Evangeline looked worried too. "If only there was some way of telling if Dr. Raven was really here or not. . . . Although honestly, I'd guess he's not. He'd know we'd look here. Unless he wants to be found, he'd stay away."

"Unless he wants to pick up some of his magical objects," Lector said, frowning at the room.

"Or his encyclopedia," Johnson said. "I'm not sure that he ever found out we took it."

"Oh no!" Yugi exclaimed. "We brought it to New Orleans with us, so he might still be able to get it from us!"

"Let's hope not," Gansley said. "But that is a good point, Lector, that he might come here looking for some of these . . . _things_ he acquired." He eyed a rack of skull jewelry with distaste. "Maybe we should lie in wait just in case."

"I don't know," David said uneasily. "I know I can't be the only one who feels that something isn't right here. It's not quite like the North wing; there, it was a feeling of intruding. But here . . ." He shook his head. "It feels worse. More . . . evil, for lack of a less cliche word."

"I sure feel it!" Crump declared. "And no way am I gonna lie in wait around here for any length of time! We've already been here too long!"

"_You'd been in here too long the moment you came in,"_ a voice whispered in his ear. _"Now you can't leave."_

Crump leaped a mile. "Who said that?!" He looked to each member of the group, desperately hoping that Johnson or someone else was just playing a prank. But from the matching expressions of concern and even fear from the group, it hadn't been any of them.

"I think you're disgusting!" Evangeline yelled. "None of us did anything to any of you! If you have a beef with Dr. Raven, that shouldn't be our problem!"

The only response was a bellowing laugh that echoed through every corner of the building.

"Oreo was right to be scared," David gulped. "Let's get out of here!"

"If it wasn't for the feeling of evil, I'd say you were just running scared," Duke said. "Raven could have hooked up the voice and the laugh. But he couldn't fake that feeling. We've felt it too much to know it's bad news. And ten to one, that door's not going to open."

Lector immediately ran over and pulled on the knob. As Duke had expected, it wouldn't turn.

"How about we break our way out?!" Crump suggested. He grabbed a chair and tried to heave it through the glass door. Instead, it bounced off and headed back towards the group.

"Look out!" Gansley growled. He took hold of Crump and pulled him to the floor. Everyone else in the chair's new trajectory ducked as well and it smashed into the wall, tearing a hole all the way through.

". . . What the heck?! What kind of cheap wall is that?!" Crump looked over his shoulder at the new mess.

"It doesn't even look like there's anything interesting there," Duke said. "Just some old wires. It's definitely not a secret panel. But . . . oh no!" He stared in horror as one of the wires sparked. "The whole place could catch fire!"

"What?!" Téa shrieked. "Why would they want to burn up the building?! They wouldn't have any place to go!"

"Maybe they're trapped here as long as the building's here," Evangeline said.

"Then they could've burned it down any time!" Crump said. "Why now?!"

"Because they hate living people just that much?" Duke countered. "Come on, we have to find a fire extinguisher and a way out!" He leaped up and started desperately opening cupboards.

The others got up to help him.

"This is ridiculous," Nesbitt snarled. "We can't even try to use our rings when we don't know where the spirits are."

"And would they even work on spirits anyway?" Gansley countered.

"The quiet creepiness in Evangeline's house is sounding pretty good right now!" Crump yelped.

It didn't take long to throw open every cupboard in the room—but there were no fire extinguishers anywhere.

"Seriously?!" Crump's hands went to his hips. "Didn't this guy obey any kind of safety laws?!"

"I'll try to call Angelique and ask her if she remembers where it is," Evangeline said. She took out her phone, only to be greeted by _No Signal._ "Oh, come on!"

"There should be a little boy's room around here somewhere," David said. "It's too bad we can't just fill a container with water, like we can for other kinds of fires." He eyed the sparking wire nervously as he ran past. At any moment it could catch on the wooden wall or a spark could fly over to the wall or someone's clothes or anywhere else that would instantly ignite.

"These ghosts are brutal," Duke said, clenching his teeth.

Serenity also joined the search for the elusive fire extinguishers. "I don't understand any of you!" she exclaimed to the spirits. "Why do you want to do this?! Is it true that you're trapped here while the building exists? Then you should have burned it down while it was empty!"

The only response was more raucous laughter.

"I'm gonna have nightmares about that voice," Crump said.

Banging on the door from the other side startled everyone.

"Mokuba," Seto said in alarm. The boy was frantically pounding on the door, along with Joey. The others in that group were running up as well.

"Seto!" Mokuba yelled through the glass. "What's going on in there?! Why can't we get in?!"

"I don't know," Seto said through clenched teeth. "It seems to be something supernatural again. Stay back!"

"Like heck we are!" Joey snapped. He backed up and poised to ram through the door. "Come on, Tristan! On three!"

Tristan ran over too. "You got it! Everyone in there, stand back!"

"Guys, look out!" Téa exclaimed. "We couldn't break the door from in here. You probably won't have any better luck out there!"

"Let's just see," Joey said. "Let's go, T!"

He and Tristan charged the door. At the last minute it flew open, admitted them, and promptly shut again. The boys stopped, blinking in surprise and confusion.

". . . What just happened?" Tristan asked.

"Joey! Tristan!" Serenity ran over in alarm. "Now you're trapped too!"

"_WHAT?!"_ Joey ran back to the door and shook the knob. "Hey, let us all out of here!"

"Oh no!" Yugi and Atem ran up to the door. "Mr. Germaine says that the shop is full of evil spirits Dr. Raven was making contracts with!" Yugi exclaimed.

"Oh gee, really?" Crump said with dripping sarcasm. "Well, did he say how to get out of here?!"

Marcel Germaine ran up as well and pressed against the glass. "I don't know," he admitted with a moan. "Maybe some good voodoo or other white magic would break their hold, but none of that is my specialty!"

"But it is mine," Atem said. "Stand back and I'll try to use the Infinity Puzzle!"

"Maybe we can all add the power of our rings on the door too," Crump said. "I mean, if all of us Ringbearers croak in here, that would endanger the world, don't you think?!"

"I would think so," Atem agreed. "Alright! Let's go!"

The sparking wire suddenly swung in a non-existent breeze, catching hold of the wall. Flames erupted.

"Oh, hurry!" Téa cried. "They really are trying to kill us!"

Mokuba stood by with wide and horrified eyes as Atem, Seto, and the Big Five desperately tried to center their items' powers on the doorknob. The flames climbed higher and everyone else had no choice but to try to cover their faces against the forming smoke. For Duke and David, this was all too reminiscent of the warehouse they had been trapped in courtesy of Yami Marik. But they tried to forget about the past and focus on the present. They had another enemy right now.

At last the door flew open, banging hard on the wall. Immediately Atem, Yugi, Mokuba, Marcel, and Angelique rushed to hold it open. "Hurry!" Mokuba exclaimed.

The group ran out, grasping each other's hands to make sure no one was left behind. As they ran, David knocked over a display on a counter in his haste to flee. At the moment, he didn't even notice the bracelet falling and snapping over his wrist. The moment the last person was out, the door slammed shut again behind them.

"Serenity!" Joey ran to his sister and hugged her close, while Seto and Mokuba were also embracing. "Man, I never should have agreed to let you go without coming too!"

"Some of us needed to go with Angelique to see Mr. Germaine, just in case there was trouble there," Serenity said. But she burrowed against Joey's shoulder. "Oh Joey . . ."

"Everything's alright now, Sis," Joey soothed. "You're safe!"

"And what the heck?!" Tristan cried. "The fire's out!"

Everyone looked to the door with a jerk. The fire was not only out, but the wall was closed up, as though it had never been damaged. The chair was sitting on the floor, where it had been when Crump had grabbed it.

"It must have all been an illusion," Yugi realized, stunned.

"Illusion?!" Crump snorted. "I can still taste the smoke!"

Marcel sighed, his shoulders slumping. "Well, whatever the reason, thank God you're all safe."

Evangeline gave a firm nod as she and Angelique embraced. "Let's get out of here and go home," she declared.

"I'm all for that!" Téa sighed in relief. "Crump's right that the ghosts at your place are starting to sound really good now."

"All except the siren," Johnson shuddered.

Everyone agreed with that.

xxxx

The entire group was shaken as they pulled in at Evangeline and Angelique's home and went inside. Bakura set Oreo on the round end table and she meowed, wanting to get back in his arms. Still trembling, he pet her several times before lifting her up again.

"That is so horrifying, what all of you went through!" he exclaimed. "What if we hadn't arrived when we did?! Would the ghosts have continued the illusion until all of you believed you were being consumed by the flames?!"

"Or until we dropped dead thinkin' we were burning up?" Crump shuddered. "I don't wanna think about it!"

Gansley sighed and patted him on the shoulder as he walked past, heading for the couch. "Well, let's think about something else. Angelique, have you been able to look over any of what you found yet?"

"I tried to look a little bit in the car, but reading and riding don't go good together for me," Angelique sighed. "I should be able to study everything better now."

"Let's just hope there's some good clues in there," Joey said.

"But that still won't help us find Raven and Lector's father, or to figure out what the deal is with Marie's fiancé," Nesbitt growled in frustration.

Lector sighed in agreement. "There's too much going on around here. I can barely keep up." He wearily sank onto the couch and leaned back, closing his eyes.

"Oh Buddy. . . ." Crump sat down next to him. "Yeah, you've really had a rough day." He patted his friend on the shoulder.

"It's really only been a day?" Lector opened his eyes again.

Crump sighed. "It feels more like a year, huh?"

Lector finally cracked a smile. "Longer than a day, at least."

"I'm getting really angry that you can't ever have a nice time when you come here," Evangeline said. "But I guess we should have known something would go wrong considering the reason you came out here in the first place."

"Hey, maybe we should look through all the stuff we took away from the little house," Crump said. "You drew that picture of the Berserk Dragon and those ones of you and Nesbitt playing, Lector. Maybe there's some other clues in there, for all we know."

"You go ahead and look, Crump," Lector told him. "I feel like laying down and going to sleep. Only how can I sleep with all of this madness going on?! My father's been abducted. My sister and my mother are mind-controlled! A lot of us very nearly escaped possibly being burned to death! Oh . . . I don't want to know what's going to happen next. . . ."

"I may have found Francoise Dove's father in Baton Rouge," Seto said. "I'm going to look into it more now. If things go right, I may be able to contact him tonight."

"Thank you for trying, Mr. Kaiba," Lector said.

Seto grunted. In the past he might have denied that he was trying to help Lector, but he saw no point in doing that now. He did, however, say, "It would help all of us to get to the bottom of this."

"And we're going to!" Mokuba insisted. "I know right now everything looks bad, Lector, but I promise things are going to be okay!" He blinked back tears. "Somehow. . . ."

Lector had to smile. "Thank you, Mokuba. I hope so."

"You just go up to bed," Crump soothed. "We'll take care of everything here."

"I doubt I'll actually sleep, though," Lector said. "And I hate to even try when so many people connected with me are hurting. It seems cruel and callous."

Nesbitt snorted in disbelief and sat on Lector's other side. "You're worried about being cruel and callous to _them?!_"

"I don't know," Lector sighed. "I suppose . . . I don't want to treat them the way they treated me. And I actually do still love them in spite of everything. I grew up with them . . . loved them . . . and I can't forget the good times even now." He turned to look at Nesbitt. "Do you still care about your parents, Nesbitt?"

Nesbitt grunted and looked away. "I guess I walked into that one. Of course I do. But they never did anything to me that's comparable to what your family did to you. The worst they've done is not be able to understand that I'm asexual. They didn't disown me when I made a mistake and then set me up to be killed by some voodoo nutcase."

"A bokor," Evangeline said without thinking.

"A what?!" Joey stared at her.

"It's like a sorcerer for hire," she explained. "They can be good or evil. Of course, we know which Dr. Raven is."

"But we don't know _where_ he is!" Joey messed up his hair. "You know, he could blow in on us anytime! He could show up to murder us in our sleep!"

"Oh gee, thanks," Crump shot back. "That's really gonna help us go to sleep tonight!"

"Someone should definitely stand guard," Atem said. "I'll do it."

Yugi looked to Bakura. "By the way, Bakura, has Yami Bakura checked in with you at all?"

Bakura gave a weak chuckle. "He said Francoise Dove went to bed and he started playing a violent game on his phone. He said he would have gotten a phone long ago if he'd known he could use it for things like that."

"Typical," Tristan said, rolling his eyes a bit.

"At least he's alright," Bakura said.

Oreo meowed in agreement.

Lector sighed and started to push himself upright. "Maybe I will try to sleep at that," he said.

"Yeah! You do that," Crump encouraged.

Nesbitt got up with him. "Let us know if anything important happens that can't wait," he said, although he hated to think of Lector being disturbed by more bad news. But they would need to know if, for instance, they learned Dr. Raven was about to attack.

"Sure thing," Crump said. "You guys go on now."

Evangeline smiled at them both. "Goodnight, Démas, Mr. Nesbitt."

"Goodnight," they echoed.

Upstairs, Nesbitt sank down on a bed in exhaustion and started loosening his tie while Lector went into the bathroom to change clothes and get ready for bed first. When he came back, Nesbitt gathered his pajamas to go into the bathroom to change. ". . . Did you . . . er . . . feel that ghost watching you again?" he asked uneasily.

"I'm too exhausted to tell," Lector sighed.

Nesbitt headed for the door, then paused. ". . . Every time I see Crump with you, I think you should be closer to him than me," he said. "He's always so comforting and seems to know the right thing to say."

Lector looked up in surprise. "Oh Nesbitt . . . I'm close to each of you, but in different ways. Crump is my older brother. Yes, he provides a great deal of comfort and advice when I need it, and that means so much to me. You, you're my younger brother. You and I are closer in age and we share more of the same interests than Crump and I do."

"Crump's always saying that you and I have a special bond," Nesbitt said awkwardly. "He even said he thought we're the closest pair among the whole group."

Lector nodded. "You mean the world to me. I never would have dreamed I could ever be that close to you, but I am so glad to be wrong."

". . . What you described about your feelings when you thought you'd lost me recently . . . actually made me concerned," Nesbitt admitted. "Not knowing how you could even go on. . . . Although . . . I felt the same when we thought you were gone. . . . But . . ." He shifted. "It's kind of overwhelming, knowing that so much damage can be done by the loss of one person. . . . Especially when that one person is me. . . ."

"I certainly crumbled to pieces when I thought you were dead," Lector agreed. "I fell apart unlike I'd ever done before and I felt like I'd died too. If you hadn't been alright, I know I never would have recovered." He gripped the quilt. He didn't like remembering that horrible time. And it was unusual for Nesbitt to bring it up. But apparently he had some lingering demons that needed to be addressed, so Lector would try to deal with talking about it again.

"Did you feel like that to lose your biological family, even though it wasn't to death?" Nesbitt asked.

Lector pondered. "We hadn't been close in some time, and I realize now that even if my father once liked me the most, he never allowed himself to be very close to me. It was a horrific blow to lose them regardless, but . . . no, I don't recall ever feeling like I couldn't go on. I had all of you." He smiled a bit.

"You'd better always have all of us," Nesbitt growled. "Every day I have to worry if something will happen to you, or any of the rest of us. . . . And now I actively have to worry what happens to me because I know I'm cared about so much. I never wanted to die, of course, but keeping myself alive partially for someone else's sake is a new concept to me."

"It's good to have that added motivation to stay alive," Lector said. "I am very happy that you're thinking about that. I think about it with myself, since I know I am also cared about deeply."

Nesbitt stared at the floor. "I think a lot about trying to live without one or more of the others around, and I just can't."

"You have nightmares about it, don't you?" Lector said quietly.

Nesbitt looked up again in surprise. ". . . Yeah. . . ." He wouldn't have admitted it on his own, and his eyes showed his bewilderment that Lector had deduced it.

"So do I," Lector said. "It would be impossible not to think about it, especially with all that we go through. And each scenario is heartwrenching and unbearable, both in dreams and in real-life."

Nesbitt clenched a fist. There had been so many instances of almost losing one or more of them. And he could never forget that Lector alone had experienced losing every one of them. Nesbitt knew he would have irreparably broke right there, in Lector's place.

"My world shatters no matter which of the others I think I've lost," Lector continued. "I know I heard somebody saying they felt you or I could pull through losing any of the others if we were together. Maybe that's true. I don't know. I don't want to think much on any of us being gone."

"I don't either," Nesbitt said. "And honestly, if it did happen, I don't know if I could ever be comforting to you like Crump is. I'm afraid you'd feel so alone, and I'd feel so lost both being without our friend and not knowing how to help you handle it. . . ."

"You're comforting in your own way," Lector said. "You've been figuring out what you can do to show your concern, and it's very much appreciated. You do comfort me whenever you've tried."

"Well . . . that's good to know," Nesbitt said awkwardly. "I try. . . . I used to feel like I couldn't do anything except to hurt you. . . ."

"You're definitely not who you used to be," Lector said. "I've watched you develop so much over this past year. You are my dear friend, just as the others are." He paused. "Are you really worried about how much I care about you, Nesbitt?"

An awkward shrug. "I just want Crump to get his fair due. He's always so good to you. And me. I . . . worry if you pay more attention to me, when Crump deserves it more. . . ."

"You deserve it too," Lector insisted. "Crump knows I care deeply about him. But I do have a hard time picturing him . . . say, laying down and draping an arm over me, as you've done. As I said, we're close in different ways." He hesitated. "And if you honestly think you don't deserve caring too, you still have a long way to go in feeling better about yourself."

". . . I guess so," Nesbitt conceded.

Lector paused again as something else occurred to him. "Nesbitt . . . did your parents ever act like you didn't deserve it?"

". . . Not in so many words," Nesbitt said haltingly. "But when they acted like I was from another planet because I wasn't their definition of normal, it didn't help."

"I should say it wouldn't!" Lector exclaimed. He got up and came over to the other man. "Nesbitt, let me assure you that you deserve it!" His expression softened. "And Crump would be the first to agree with me."

Nesbitt finally smiled. "Thanks."

Lector laid his hands on Nesbitt's shoulders. "You just remember that."

Nesbitt nodded, appeased. "I will." He slipped out and into the bathroom to change.

The sheer size of the bathroom always astonished him. Not that he and the others didn't have large ones in their mansion homes, but theirs were arranged more logically, as far as he was concerned. He still wasn't sure of the point of having cleaning supplies across from the tub in the middle, or having the toilet all the way at the back while the sink was near the door. But at least the aisle was wide and the supplies wouldn't be crashed into unless one wasn't paying any attention at all.

The feeling of eyes watching him sent a chill down his spine as he started to unbutton his shirt. "What's your problem anyway?" he finally snapped. "Instead of just watching everyone, why don't you help us?! We don't deserve to be tortured or slaughtered by Dr. Raven, if he shows up!"

"_You are a true friend of the Leichters, aren't you?"_ a voice whispered in his ear.

"What is this?!" he snarled. "I'm a true friend to Démas Lector, and to anyone in his family who treats him well."

"_Would you be willing to . . . die for him?"_

Nesbitt's blood ran cold. Aside from the fact that this line of questioning was just disturbing, that was a loaded question. He would be willing, but he didn't want to. It would cripple Lector emotionally, just as it would him if Lector died for him.

"I'm not answering any more of your sick questions," he spat. "I'm going to bed!"

He could feel the ghost continuing to watch him as he changed out of his day clothes and into his pajamas. Fuming, he stormed out of the room and headed in the direction of the bedroom . . . only the bedroom wasn't where it was supposed to be. When Nesbitt pushed on the doorknob, a cold and unfamiliar room greeted him.

"Now what are you doing?!" he yelled. "Did you change the whole layout of the floor on me, like you did to Gansley and Crump upstairs?!"

The voice didn't answer. And as Nesbitt opened door after door, he found that he was hopelessly lost. None of these rooms were familiar. Closing his eyes and picturing the way the second floor was supposed to look didn't help.

"Lector?!" he cried. "Where are you?! Gansley?! Crump?! Johnson?! Someone answer me!"

But no one did.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes: Thanks to Azalea542 for plot help!**

**Chapter Nine**

It was only when David entered his and Duke's room that he really noticed the strange bracelet on his wrist. "What the . . . where did this come from?!"

Duke looked over and quirked an eyebrow. "Are you picking up some taste in fashion you haven't told me about?"

"That sounds like one of my lines," David said. "This is serious, Duke! I don't know where I got this!" He tugged on the bracelet, but it didn't budge. His blood ran chill.

"Okay, what?" Duke came over for a closer look. The deep red-violet beads would be striking at any other time, but after everything they had been through today, something seemed off. Duke frowned, taking hold of the bracelet with both hands and attempting to roll it over David's wrist and hand. It remained firm.

"Duke . . ." David looked up at him with visible fear in his eyes. "It must have come from Dr. Raven's shop."

"Why?" Duke frowned.

"Because I knocked over a display as we were running out," David explained. "The bracelet must have fallen from there. That's all I can think of anyway."

Duke's stomach knotted. "If that's where it's from, then who knows what it's going to do to you!" He ran over to the door. "Come on! We have to tell Evangeline about this now. She might know what to do!"

"Maybe Angelique would know more, since she worked with Dr. Raven," David suggested as he chased after his friend.

"Fine! Then we'll ask her too!" Duke shot back.

The boys dashed into the hall and almost bowled Evangeline over as she headed towards her room. "Why, what's the problem?!" she exclaimed.

"David got this stuck on his wrist!" Duke held up David's left wrist.

"It must have happened when I knocked a display over at the shop," David said. "I would have noticed it any other time."

Evangeline looked at the bracelet in bewilderment. "I've never seen anything like that before. But if it's from Dr. Raven's shop, it must be evil."

"Did we mention it won't come off?" David said.

Angelique came out of her room now. "What's going on . . . oh!" She stared in horror. "Why do you have that?!"

"I wish I knew." David gave another vain tug on the beads.

"You know what it is, don't you." Duke frowned at Angelique. They needed to know, but he dreaded it. From her reaction, and his own sinking feeling, it was obvious this was bad.

"It's a binding bracelet," Angelique said weakly. "It binds the wearer to the will of its owner."

Duke, David, and Evangeline all paled.

"Does that mean I'm going to be under Dr. Raven's control?" David asked. Somewhere inside himself, he wondered how he was staying so calm when he really felt like screaming bloody murder.

"Maybe," Angelique said. "Unless something in that shop has control of it now. And it's not like mind-control," she added. "You'll be completely aware of everything it has you say and do; you just won't be able to stop yourself. It was one of Dr. Raven's favorite and most cruel methods of torture."

Now David felt sick. Something might be controlling him and he wouldn't even know who it was?! "How do I get it off?!"

"We'd need the counterspell for the binding," Angelique said. "I don't have that. Dr. Raven would have it . . . or his horrible assistant Amelia. . . ."

"Then we'll just have to talk to Amelia," Duke said.

"They'll never let us call her until daytime," Angelique protested.

"Maybe they'll make an exception if they know it's an emergency," Duke countered. "We have to try!"

No one disagreed.

xxxx

Lector had been laying in bed for several long minutes, trying and failing to doze. He hated when this happened, being too tired to sleep. It was so ironic and ridiculous.

Or was there another reason why he was having trouble tonight?

Why wasn't Nesbitt back?

Lector sat up and looked at the other bed. He certainly hadn't started to doze and allowed Nesbitt to slip past him unawares. The bed was completely empty and not slept in. But Nesbitt shouldn't still be in the bathroom.

Lector had the covers thrown back in an instant and was up, getting into his slippers before moving into the hall. The bathroom door was open; coming closer showed that no one was there. "Nesbitt?" he called. "Where are you?"

He stepped inside the large room to be sure, but indeed, Nesbitt was nowhere to be seen. And he hadn't left any of his clothes behind. Not that Lector thought he would.

Well, maybe he had stopped to talk to the others. Lector walked over to their room and knocked.

Crump opened the door almost immediately. "Hey, Buddy!" he greeted. "Wow, these boxes we brought are a treasure trove of stuff! You really drew a lot back then."

Lector barely processed Crump's words. "Is Nesbitt here?" he asked.

"Huh? He was supposed to be with you," Crump blinked.

"He's supposed to be, but he's not," Lector said. "He never came to bed!"

Gansley looked over and frowned. "Well, maybe he's talking with someone else."

"Who?!" Lector exclaimed. One more strange and stressful thing was not what he needed tonight. This day had been torturous enough. Couldn't he even lay down without something else going wrong?

"Calm down, Lector," Johnson said. "We'll find him. I'm sure everything's alright."

"I wish I was," Lector muttered. He wasn't sure of anything anymore. Maybe he was overreacting, but in this city, on this case, in this house, anything seemed possible.

Within moments Lector's worry only increased as everyone denied having seen Nesbitt after he had gone up to bed with Lector. And trying to call his cellphone went nowhere. Lector slumped back, utterly overwhelmed.

"He's gone," he said. "Something happened to him right under our noses! Maybe Dr. Raven got in here and spirited him away just like he did with my father!"

Gansley couldn't even say that wasn't possible. He sat down next to Lector and slowly drew an arm around him. But even as he did, Lector's already paling skin grew even more sickly. "Oh no," he rasped.

"What is it?" Gansley asked.

"Nesbitt and I were talking right before he went to change his clothes for bed," Lector explained. "We talked about how close we are and how I broke when I thought he was dead. . . ." He trembled. "Maybe Dr. Raven overheard somehow. Or maybe even some of the ghosts heard and decided to be cruel because I'm a Leichter! They may have done something to him to get at me!"

Gansley stiffened. He couldn't say that was impossible either. "We'll find him, Lector," he insisted.

Crump exchanged a horrified look with Johnson. It definitely sounded possible to him. And it was obvious Lector was reaching his breaking point. He couldn't take any more today. If Nesbitt turned up hurt . . . or worse . . . no, Crump couldn't bear to think of it.

"Of course we'll find him!" he said. "He's gotta be in the house somewhere! Maybe he found a secret passageway in the john or something and fell through! I'll go look right now!"

Lector perked up a little. "I guess that's possible," he admitted. "Evangeline didn't think we'd found all the secret passageways. . . ." He got up, invigorated by the idea of something they could do other than sit and feel helpless. "Alright! Let's look!"

Gansley was relieved to see the color coming back into Lector's face. He pushed himself up, praying that this would indeed work . . . and that Nesbitt was unhurt, wherever he was.

Johnson stayed back to quietly talk with Gansley as they moved into the hall. "Evangeline seemed so distracted when I asked her about Nesbitt," he said quietly. "I have the feeling something else is wrong too, but I hate for Lector to know. . . ."

Gansley nodded. "But of course he'll have to," he sighed. "After we find Nesbitt, we'll have to ask Evangeline what happened."

". . . And what if we can't find him?" Johnson worried.

"I don't even want to think about it," Gansley said. Could Dr. Raven have really taken him? Or were the ghosts being malicious or even malevolent? Any possibility he could think of was horrible, really.

Johnson looked away. He felt the same, but he couldn't stop thinking about it. And the more he thought about it, the more he felt like screaming. He couldn't stand to think of Nesbitt laying somewhere, hurt or maybe even . . .

He shook his head. That wouldn't just break Lector; it would break all of them. To remove any part of their family would devastate the ones left. Johnson had seen firsthand what could happen, including to him. He would have to fight not to check out and go catatonic if anything else did happen, but even if he managed that, he knew he would crumble and not be able to comfort anyone. And he knew the same would be true of Lector. Gansley and Crump would be the ones trying to hold everything together, but they would only be able to go so far.

He clenched a fist. He couldn't let anything happen. Nesbitt had to be alright.

"What if there isn't a secret passage in the bathroom, though?" he finally asked.

"Then . . ." Gansley sighed and shook his head. "We'll have to start thinking of other possibilities, like Dr. Raven."

"Or the ghosts here," Johnson said.

They entered the bathroom and looked around. Everything seemed so eerily normal, aside from Nesbitt's disappearance. And the longer they stayed and desperately pressed parts of the wall, hoping for it to open up, the more the feeling that they were being watched increased.

"What did you do with Nesbitt?!" Lector finally demanded.

But the ghosts were silent. So were the walls.

It was almost an hour later when the Big Four had to concede defeat. "He's not here," Lector said in anguish. He sank down on the edge of the tub. "He's literally vanished into thin air!"

Crump sat next to him. "He's gotta be somewhere!" he insisted. "What if the passageway opened up between here and the bedroom?"

"That's not very far to go," Lector said.

"But it's somethin', at least!" Crump stood again. "We've gotta try!"

The others certainly agreed with that. So they trouped into the hall and began the exhausting search again.

"I wonder where Evangeline is," Lector frowned after a moment. "She would want to help look too. . . ."

Johnson exchanged a look with Gansley. "Well, you know everyone spread out all over the house to look everywhere," he said at last.

"That's true, but I'd think she'd check in with me." Lector looked to him. "What's going on, Johnson? Something else is happening that she's trying to take care of, am I right?"

Johnson's shoulders slumped. "I'm afraid so," he finally admitted. Maybe in the past he would have kept up the ruse, even acting smooth like his lawyer persona. But right now he couldn't bring himself to keep lying to Lector. The truth would be out soon anyway.

Lector stopped walking and stood in front of him with folded arms. "What happened, Johnson?" he demanded. "I know I probably seem like I'm going to break by this point, but I still need to know what's going on."

"I don't know," Johnson said honestly. "But she seemed so distracted . . . I know something was wrong."

"Oh . . ." Lector turned away, throwing his hands in his air. "I need to find out what that is now too!"

"Nesbitt is the more immediate problem," Gansley said. "Let's finish our search first. Maybe Evangeline will come find us before we're done."

Lector was quick to agree to that, even though he feared they wouldn't find Nesbitt this way. At least Evangeline was still here. Nesbitt was who knew where right now. And he was sadly right—they finished going up and down the wall without uncovering any secret passages. By the time they reached the bedroom door and he looked inside to see the bed still just as empty, he sank against the wall and let himself slide to the floor.

Crump was about at his wit's end too. "Where the heck is he?!" he yelled, flinging his hands in the air much as Lector had done.

". . . I guess he could have heard something strange and impulsively went off to examine it," Johnson slowly suggested.

"It would certainly be a very Nesbitt thing to do," Gansley said with a weary sigh.

"And then he got hurt, since he didn't answer the phone," Lector mumbled.

No one could counter that.

The others throughout the house began to trickle back to report in, all glum-faced and bewildered at their lack of success.

"It really is like he disappeared into thin air!" Joey cried with a wild gesture. "He's nowhere!"

Mokuba approached Lector in sorrow. "I'm so sorry, Lector," he said. "We've been trying so hard. . . ."

Lector looked up at him. "I know you have, Mokuba," he said. "And I most certainly appreciate it."

"And we've got more bad news," Duke announced.

Everyone looked over with a jerk. Duke was approaching with David, Evangeline, and Angelique. Lector quickly got to his feet. "What is it?" he demanded.

David sighed. "Apparently I've got a binding bracelet on my wrist?" He held up the offending object, still stubbornly attached to his left wrist. "It must have happened at Dr. Raven's shop. I would have noticed any other time."

Lector stiffened, but everyone else was baffled.

"What's a binding bracelet?!" Crump exclaimed.

Evangeline looked to Lector in surprise. "You already know, don't you, Démas," she said softly.

"Mother taught me about them," Lector said. "Corrupted _vodun_ priests use them to bind someone to their will. They will say and do whatever the priest wants, even as they're fighting tooth and nail against it."

"And according to Dr. Raven's wacky assistant Amelia, whom we woke up the prison warden to talk to tonight, it can only be removed by either the priest who cursed the bracelet in the first place or by a practitioner of uncorrupted _vodun_," David finished. His eyes flickered in fear. "I guess your mom or Marie could do it under ordinary circumstances, but right now they're both out of it."

"And I didn't even know about these things," Evangeline said, stricken. "Father must have refused to let Mother talk to me about them!"

Serenity was horrified. "This is awful!" she exclaimed. She hurried over to Duke. It was obvious from the boy's eyes that he was overwhelmed and panic-stricken at David being in danger. What had happened in the past was too much for Duke; he wasn't sure he could stand another experience with David in trouble. And David looked overwhelmed likewise.

"Oh . . ." Lector looked overwhelmed too, but suddenly something occurred to him. "What about the book?" he asked. "The one Nesbitt found? Maybe there's a spell in there for removing a binding bracelet!"

Evangeline's eyes brightened. "That's a wonderful idea! I'll look through it right now! I never did finish; it could be on one of the pages I didn't get to yet!" She moved to run off but stopped. "Oh . . . Mr. Nesbitt hasn't been found yet, has he?"

"No," Lector said in despair. "I don't know what we're going to do about that either!"

"Right now, I'm afraid the only things left to do are to keep looking and to pray," Atem said, grim-faced as he took in everything that was unfolding all at once.

"And we're all sure doing that," Yugi added, looking up at Lector. "We'll find him, Lector. I promise!"

"What I'm afraid of is that he's not in the house to find," Lector said. "Dr. Raven probably took him!"

"If that is the truth, we'll find that out as well," Atem said. "But one way or another, we _will_ find him and bring him back!"

Lector clenched a fist. He certainly wouldn't give up. Nesbitt meant everything to him, just as he had said earlier that evening. And he would do anything he had to, even dip into the family's _vodun_ heritage if necessary, to get him back.

"Thank you, all of you," he said. "Yes . . . let's keep looking. There must still be some places we've overlooked!"

"Yeah!" Joey said. "A whole lot of 'em!"

"And we haven't checked outside at all yet," Tristan added.

"Great!" Crump said. "So let's keep going! Spread out and look, everybody!"

The group began to disperse. As Lector moved to head down the hall, the slight sound of piano keys being hit in an off-key manner made him jump a mile. He frowned, quickly rerouting his path to the upstairs music room. The door was already ajar, so he pushed it open the rest of the way. Then all color drained from his face.

Nesbitt was sprawled on the floor under the piano, a Civil War-era sword piercing through his body and pinning him to the floor. One hand was up, resting on the piano keys and leaving them stained with blood. It was obvious he was dead.

Lector froze, unable to move, to think. "N-Nesbitt?!" he choked out. This was the final blow, the last straw. He couldn't take this on top of everything else.

Crump stiffened at the sound of a loud crash around the corner. "What the heck was that?!" He ran over, followed by Johnson, Gansley, and Mokuba. Then he could only stop and stare in shocked horror at the grisly scene before them. Lector had collapsed on the floor in a dead faint. Up ahead, Nesbitt's body was still gruesomely held to the floor by the antique sword.

Mokuba screamed and turned away, sobbing uncontrollably. Seto was promptly there, holding the child close while he stared into the room in outrage. "What is this?!" he yelled.

Johnson clapped a shaking hand to his mouth. "No. . . ." He turned away and choked, desperate to not throw up in front of everyone. His shoulders shook with both sobs and gags.

Overwhelmed, Gansley sank to his knees next to Lector, while Crump ran into the room in enraged denial. "What the heck did you do this for?!" he bellowed.

A chilling laugh echoed throughout the room. But even as Crump tore over, Nesbitt's body morphed into that of a shadowy spectre. The only feature visible on its face was its mouth, and it leered at Crump with its rows of white teeth. Then it was gone, laughing, laughing, as the sword clattered to the floor and the blood vanished from both the piano and the carpet.

"An illusion," Gansley realized. He carefully lifted Lector so his head rested on Gansley's lap. "Nesbitt isn't dead. That wasn't even him!" His eyes flashed. Now he was furious. "How dare you!" he boomed.

Crump started screaming obscenities at the vanished phantom. "You gotta be real sick to do something like that!" he cried.

Johnson and Mokuba shakily looked up. "It wasn't Nesbitt?" Mokuba quavered.

"No, it wasn't, but the damage has been done." Gansley was holding a hand to Lector's forehead and then pressing his fingers to Lector's throat. "That abominable stunt drove Lector to a collapse. It could very easily develop into something worse from here." He looked up at Seto. "Please, Mr. Kaiba, send for one of your medics at the airplane!"

Seto took out his phone. "I'm on it." He continued to keep an arm around Mokuba as he dialed. This stunt enraged him too. Mokuba would never be able to get that horrific imagery out of his mind. That alone meant that ghost would have to answer for what he had done to Seto Kaiba. But in addition to that, Seto had finally acknowledged he cared about Lector. Seeing a strong-willed man like that finally driven to despair and illness from a succession of heartbreaks culminating in thinking his treasured friend had been murdered outraged Seto as well. There would be no mercy, no forgiveness, for this spirit.

Mokuba trembled. "Is Lector going to be okay?" he asked.

"I don't know," Gansley admitted. A cold horror gripped him at the realization that he honestly didn't know. He gripped Lector's clammy hand. "Please, wake up, Lector . . . son," he begged. "That wasn't Nesbitt. And even if it had been, you know we could never stand to lose both of you. You must not let Dr. Raven and his cruel spirits win!" He trembled as he brought the limp hand to his forehead. "Please . . ."

Only Crump saw the helpless tear slip from Gansley's eye. He knelt on the floor and hugged their leader close, then reached with his other arm to draw Johnson in too.

Johnson had once never thought he would join in with hugs for anyone, but so much had changed. He knelt and let Crump hug him.

"Please, Lector," he whispered. "Please. . . ."

But Lector lay still on Gansley's lap, his skin once again a sickly pale.

"Let's get him back to the bedroom," Gansley said. "At least one of us should stay with him while the rest keep looking for Nesbitt."

"You stay with him, Gansley," Crump said as he reached to lift Lector into his arms. "Me and Johnson'll keep looking."

"Yes," Johnson said weakly. "We have to find him. . . ." He closed his eyes and shuddered. "Before anything like _that_ really happens. . . ."

Gansley laid a hand on Johnson's shoulder. "Are you alright?" he asked quietly.

Johnson flushed red. "Are any of us alright right now?" he countered.

Gansley sighed and shook his head. Of course, none of them were.

". . . At least I didn't really throw up," Johnson said weakly.

"If you had, no one would have mocked you," Gansley said. He took his cane and pushed himself up. "I felt like it myself."

Johnson got up too, and reached to help Crump with Lector. He hated whenever one or more of them was hurt, for multiple reasons. Of course he hated it for the one hurt, and he also hated it for how the others suffered. Gansley always ended up looking decades older, and even though Kasumi had apparently healed his bad heart, Johnson feared during every crisis that it might just be too much for his old friend and he would suffer a fatal heart attack.

"Where do you think Nesbitt really is?" he finally asked.

"If I knew, we could go there," Gansley grunted. He felt Lector's forehead again as they started to walk.

"Is he getting a fever?" Johnson asked. He knew Gansley had feared that would happen and that was why he had asked for a medic.

"Not yet," Gansley said. "In fact, right now he feels cold rather than hot. That can't be good either."

Worry filled Crump's eyes. "Maybe it's some supernatural thing!" he exclaimed.

"I'm afraid it might be," Gansley acknowledged. "They could very easily and cruelly decide to harm Lector more while he's vulnerable like this."

"But why the heck would the ghosts in the house suddenly attack him like this?!" Crump fumed.

"It could have been spirits sent by Dr. Raven instead," Gansley pointed out.

". . . Oh yeah," Crump frowned. "I guess I'd rather think that than to havta think that the ghosts who live here are getting so cruel."

They all entered the bedroom and Crump and Johnson laid Lector down on his bed. Lector groaned, turning his head to the side. "Nesbitt . . ."

"It wasn't him, Buddy," Crump protested. "Nesbitt's still out there and we're gonna find him! I promise!"

Lector didn't speak again. He clearly wasn't fully conscious.

Sighing sadly, Gansley sat down next to the bed. "I'll stay here with you, Lector," he said. "Crump and Johnson will look for Nesbitt."

"And we won't come back without him!" Crump said. ". . . I hope."

Johnson shakily adjusted his glasses. The way things were going, he wondered if any of them would come back at all.

xxxx

Nesbitt opened yet another door and then banged it against the wall in disgust. None of these rooms were the actual rooms. The arrangement of the furniture was different, but more than that, the furniture itself and each room's decorations were always different. He didn't recognize so much as a flower pot. And since nothing changed when he tried to imagine the floor plan the way it actually looked, he was more and more increasingly afraid that this wasn't an illusion, as had been done to Gansley and Crump in the past. But if it wasn't an illusion, what on Earth was it? It defied all logic that he could really be in a different version of the second floor!

"Why are you doing this to me?!" he bellowed. "You've stood and silently watched all this time. And I thought you were a benevolent spirit, since you guided me to Lector when he needed help!"

He paused. Maybe this wasn't the work of that ghost. Who knew how many ghosts inhabited this house? Or maybe even . . . what if they had brought something malevolent back with them from the shop? He once never would have considered such a thing, but now it didn't seem so outlandish. How far he had fallen.

"Who are you?" he tried again.

There was no reply, but he could feel the coldness of the watchful, entertained eyes as he tried another door. He was trapped in some sort of maze crafted by this unfriendly being.

Was there any chance that going downstairs would break the spell? Maybe the strangeness was only on this level. He turned back, looking for the stairs. Instead, everything looked different once again—and there was no sign of any staircase.

He hit the wall in aggravation. What was he going to do? His phone wasn't working either, so he couldn't even call for help.

What if he wasn't the only victim of this?

He looked back up the corridor in new alarm. What if Lector and the others and everyone were also part of this sick game? Maybe each person had been placed in a different floor layout. It sounded ludicrous, but so did everything about this situation.

"Is anyone here?" he called.

Still no answer.

He tried to go back to where he thought the bathroom was, but when he opened the door, another unknown room greeted him. A snarl of utter frustration left his lips.

After a moment the sight of a book on a table caught his eye and he went in, taking it up from its place. Was anything even real here? The book felt real. And when he opened it, the diary entries seemed real too. To his relief, they were in English.

_I don't understand what goes on in this house. It's so arbitrary and there never_

_seems to be any reason for it, but sometimes I can step out of the bathroom or_

_a bedroom and into a completely foreign space. Why? And what is this other space?_

_Is it another dimension existing side by side with ours? Am I being transported to_

_another location? It happens to Ismael on occasion too, and even to Snakes once._

_I wish I knew how we get back to the real world once it happens. That always seems_

_arbitrary too. Sometimes I'm stuck in here for hours._

"Snakes," Nesbitt said in disbelief. This diary must have been written by Ismael's wife. He took out his phone, but of course it was still displaying _No Signal_. He couldn't call Snakes and talk to him about it any more than he could call any of his friends.

_I'm leaving this diary in here in case anyone else ends up in this place._

_At least they'll know they're not crazy. I just wish I had some advice to_

_give on how to get out._

Nesbitt flipped through the rest of the diary. None of the other entries had anything to do with this mess. But maybe he would take it with him anyway. There might be something useful in it that would help them on their case, for all he'd know. Lector or Evangeline would probably like to have it regardless.

"I'm not going to just sit around and wait for this madness to end," Nesbitt growled. "I'll find the way out!"

But he couldn't help the terror creeping through his veins. He had been up and down and all over the new floor plan, and it was never stable. This room hadn't been here when he had first arrived.

He frowned. This was where the bathroom was supposed to be, though, so what if it existed in the same space but another dimension? He had got into this mess from the bathroom, so maybe the way out was in this room.

Hopeful now, he turned and walked back through the doorway. But his hopes were quickly dashed when he saw it was the same unfamiliar hallway and rooms looking back at him. When he went back through the doorway, it was still the strange bedroom and not the bathroom.

He ran a hand over his face. This was even more terrifying than when they had all been trapped in virtual reality. They had all been together then.

Now, he was all alone.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

Mokuba sat on the other side of Lector's bed, his eyes filled with new tears. Lector hadn't stirred again, and he still looked so pale and sick. Gansley didn't look a whole lot better. All of their mysteries caused them so much heartache, but Mokuba really didn't know how much more they could take. Or how much _he_ could take either.

"I just don't get why any of the ghosts would do this!" Mokuba finally exclaimed. "I didn't think they were this messed-up!"

"I don't know what I thought," Gansley said wearily. "But it could be a spirit that followed us home from the shop, or one sent by Dr. Raven."

"Well, then why don't the ghosts who live here wanna get the intruder out?!" Mokuba folded his arms. "They really don't care what happens to us! And probably just because there's two Leichters here!"

Gansley gripped the armrest. "Hatred does frightening things to people. They lose all sense of compassion and kindness. They even start to lose love for those they cared most about."

"Yeah. . . ." Mokuba stared sadly at Lector. He supposed he was lucky that Lector and Seto had never got that far; they had never stopped loving him or trying to help him. From what he had heard about the alternate Seto and Mokuba, that Seto had indeed started to forget his love for Mokuba for a time. Mokuba couldn't imagine what a Hell that must have been for his counterpart. No wonder that Mokuba had gotten messed-up in the head.

". . . Do you really think it's that killing on the roof that they're all so upset about?" he asked.

"I don't know," Gansley said. "It certainly could be. But on the other hand, there could be another piece we're missing somewhere."

"Maybe. . . ." Mokuba looked up at him again. "Gansley, you look so awful. . . . I'm worried about you too. This has to be tough on you. . . ."

". . . I can't stand watching the others suffer," Gansley admitted, his voice darkening. "Everything Lector's gone through over this _one day_. . . . I knew the stress and the anguish would be too much for him sooner or later." He laid his hand over Lector's. It still felt unnaturally cold. "And I don't even know what's happening to him now. I thought certain he was headed for a fever, but the opposite seems to be happening. I'm sure it's some added supernatural nonsense meant to torment him."

"Maybe the ghosts are making him see that illusion about Nesbitt over and over," Mokuba said softly. "I'm still seeing it in my head. . . ."

"So am I," Gansley said. "I know Lector must be. And I doubt he could hear us when we tried to tell him it wasn't Nesbitt. If he continues to believe Nesbitt was killed, and in such a gruesome manner, I'm honestly afraid he might lose the will to live."

"But . . . he loves all the rest of you guys too," Mokuba protested. "He wouldn't want any of you to suffer losing him. . . . And I'm sure he wants to be with you. . . ."

"For all we know, the ghosts are making him think we're all dead," Gansley said. "I know he would struggle to live even if he thought Nesbitt was dead, but if he believed we were all gone, I know he couldn't take it, especially in his current emotional state. And in his current state, he might be brought so low with grief over Nesbitt that he wouldn't be able to think clearly and his body would just start shutting down from his broken heart."

Now the tears fell. Mokuba climbed on the bed and laid at Lector's side, hugging him close. "We're not dead, Lector," he pleaded. "Please come back. . . . Nesbitt's not dead either . . . we hope. . . ."

Gansley bowed his head. He certainly did hope. He couldn't bear to lose Nesbitt either. And if Nesbitt were here, he might be able to get through to Lector as no one else could right now.

"Démas?"

They looked up with a start when Evangeline appeared in the doorway. She stared, horrified at the scene before her. "What happened to my brother?!"

Gansley sighed. "I have the terrible feeling that everything that's been happening today has been set up to deliberately devastate him. He was finally pushed to his breaking point by an evil spirit that disguised himself as Nesbitt and pretended to have been murdered in a sickening fashion."

"What?!" Evangeline ran into the room.

Mokuba looked up at her. "It was awful," he said. "Lector just collapsed. . . . We found him lying on the floor. . . . Seto's called for a doctor from the plane. . . ."

"Oh no. . . ." Evangeline stared at Lector. "He looks so sick. . . ."

"I know," Gansley said. "I don't know what to do. Have you had any luck finding a counterspell for that binding bracelet?"

"No," Evangeline sighed. "I've been up and down through that book, but there's nothing. I'm going up in the attic to see if there's another volume."

"Don't go alone," Mokuba said weakly. "Maybe Nesbitt wouldn't have disappeared if someone had been with him. . . ."

"I'm not afraid of these ghosts," Evangeline said. "I'm angry! But no, I won't go alone." She bent down. "Démas? Démas, can you hear me?! Oh. . . ." Her eyes flickered with helplessness and she straightened again. "Shouldn't he be awake by now? Something? Even if he was delirious, it seems like that would be preferable to this. . . ."

"I agree," Gansley said, his heart heavy. "At least with delirium we would know what to expect. With this . . . I don't know what to do at all."

Evangeline's eyes flashed. "This is Mother's fault!" she spat. "She's the one who got him out here and set this whole thing in motion!"

"Only she sent for him because Marie and her future husband were going to move into the little house after their wedding," Gansley pointed out. "And if her fiancé is behind everything that's happening, then the fault ultimately lies at his feet."

"I guess so," Evangeline said, "but right now I'm angrier at Mother. And Phillipe. It's not like Marie's fiancé has anything personal against us unless he really is a Germaine, maybe, but our family has it in for Démas. That will always make them worse, in my eyes. And someone like Francoise Dove wouldn't be able to even think of a twisted scheme like this if the family wasn't in the perfect position to make it happen!" She spun around. "I'll go find someone to go in the attic with me. Please let me know the moment there's any change!"

"We will," Gansley said.

Mokuba just sighed sadly and sat up as Evangeline left. "I guess the medic should be here soon," he said when Evangeline left, "but if the ghosts are keeping Lector out of it, the doctor probably won't know what to do either. . . ."

"I am certainly afraid of that," Gansley said. He hesitated. "Are you alright, Mokuba? Illusion or not, you saw something no child should ever have to see."

Mokuba looked away. "It's not the first horrible thing I've seen. . . ."

"Sadly, that's true," Gansley conceded. "But that doesn't make this sight any less horrible."

"I guess . . . I'm more worried about Lector right now," Mokuba said. "I'm not even thinking much about what we saw."

Gansley sighed. That might very well be true, but he imagined that Mokuba would end up thinking about it later if not now.

They both looked up as Seto entered the room in the company of one of his doctors. Mokuba hurriedly got off the bed.

The physician stared at Lector in deep concern. "From all you've told me about what's happened just on this one day, Mr. Kaiba, it's no wonder the poor man collapsed!" He started to examine Lector, while the others tensely stood around and observed.

"Is he gonna be okay?" Mokuba quavered.

The doctor shook his head. "I don't know. It concerns me that he feels so cold. Has he regained consciousness at all?"

"Not completely," Gansley said. "He moaned for Nesbitt, but wasn't aware enough to hear us tell him Nesbitt wasn't killed."

"I've never seen anything like this," the doctor said in dismay. "He shouldn't feel cold. . . ."

"It's probably the ghosts," Mokuba bitterly muttered.

"I can't think of any medical condition that would cause this, given the circumstances," the doctor had to admit. "But what I can tell you is that the stress all of you have been under almost constantly would bring almost anyone to his knees, and probably long before this. I think what would help Mr. Lector the most would be if Mr. Nesbitt could be found. There are no leads at all?"

"None," Gansley growled. "We've practically torn the house apart by now."

"Well, do whatever else you can to find him, and soon," the doctor said. "If Mr. Lector can know his friend is alive and well, I'm certain it would go a long way towards recovery. _However . . ._" He looked to each person in the room. "This was only the final nail in the coffin. Many things have led up to this collapse. Even after getting Mr. Nesbitt back, he still needs rest, and plenty of it. Coming to New Orleans is far too stressful for him. It would be best if you could get him out of here as soon as possible."

Gansley passed a hand over his face. "How I wish we could," he lamented. "He won't have any real peace until these problems with his family are solved to the point that no one is under a spell and his sister won't be marrying a possibly dangerous person. If we take him home with none of that fixed, he won't be able to relax. It might only make it worse, because he would feel that he needed to be here to do what he could to fix things."

"He's in no shape to do anything stressful," the doctor insisted. "If this goes on, there may be no choice but to force relaxation through sedation."

Mokuba gasped. Gansley stiffened.

"No," he said, just as insistently. "Not yet. That's the last thing Lector would want; he never even takes sleeping pills."

"Then you'll have to find some other way to get him to rest," the doctor said. "But first and foremost, you have to find Mr. Nesbitt."

"If we can't . . . is Lector gonna die?" Mokuba knew he sounded afraid. Seto laid a hand on his shoulder.

The doctor hesitated for far too long. ". . . He might," he admitted. "In his emotional state, it's hard to say how deeply this latest shock could affect him."

That was exactly what Gansley feared. _Oh Nesbitt,_ he said silently. _Wherever you are, we need you to come back immediately. You will never forgive yourself if you're too late._

And what if Nesbitt really was dead?

A cold chill spread through Gansley's veins. No, he wasn't going to consider that.

But it was impossible not to think about it.

xxxx

Duke, David, and Serenity decided to accompany Evangeline to the attic in search of a second volume of hand-written _vodun_ spells. As they headed up to the third floor, David grew more and more distressed as he fought in vain with the bracelet on his wrist.

"Duke . . . what if before we can get this thing off, whoever's controlling it starts giving me commands?" he worried.

"Then we'll deal with it," Duke shot back.

"I'm a ticking time-bomb like this," David told him. "I don't trust myself to be around. I should be tied down and locked up until we solve the problem."

"No!" Serenity gasped.

"It's the best way," David said. "There's also amputating my hand and wrist, but I'd really rather not go that far."

Duke clenched a fist. "You shouldn't have to be locked up," he snapped. "We'll figure it out! If all else fails, maybe we can . . . go find some other practitioner of uncorrupted _vodun_ to remove it. I mean, there's got to be a ton of them around here, right?"

"That's true," Evangeline said. "You'd think it wouldn't be hard. . . ."

David shivered as they reached the third floor. The watchful eyes of one of the ghosts were definitely on them. "I don't suppose you'd be willing to help us get this off, would you?" he ventured, holding his wrist up for the invisible spectre to see.

Of course there was no reply.

Evangeline sighed and shook her head. "These ghosts don't care about us, with the possible exception of that one who helped Mr. Nesbitt and Démas last year. I'm tired of dealing with their garbage. All they care about is themselves." She climbed the creaking wooden steps to the attic and pushed the door open.

"You could always move," Duke said.

"I sure would, no matter how much I liked the house," David added.

"And I suppose it'll end up coming down to that," Evangeline conceded. "But I hate that. I'm stubborn and I don't want to give up and let the ghosts win." She flipped on the lights and started weaving amid the tables and stacks of boxes. When she found one she hadn't examined yet, she stopped and opened it.

"Maybe the ghosts who live here really aren't responsible for the really mean things, just like they weren't before," Serenity said. "Remember how it felt like a vise had been taken off the whole property when Gozaburo was defeated?"

"I can never forget it," Evangeline said.

Her three friends spread out and began looking in boxes too. David found one with old Halloween decorations and quickly moved on.

Evangeline dug deeper into a box filled with feather boas and old hats. "I sent for the exorcist right before I rounded up all of you," she continued. "He should be here soon."

"If Dr. Raven brought this ghost, it probably comes and goes as it pleases," David worried.

"Well, hopefully the exorcist can kick it out and keep it from getting back in. Once that ghost, whoever it was, did something so unspeakably cruel, that was it. Out it goes, no matter what it takes." Evangeline straightened, brushing a loose strand of hair out of her face. "No books in here. But it looks like the remains of a 1920s costume party."

"When he comes, won't you have to go to him?" Serenity asked.

"Angelique said she'd let him in," Evangeline said. "She knows it's vital to find a counterspell for that bracelet."

"How long should we look through this before giving up?" David wondered. He set aside a box of old dolls.

"Well, I don't think we can get in to see a _mambo _until morning," Evangeline said. "Although I might try looking anyway, since we don't know how much time we have before the one controlling that bracelet decides to strike."

David cringed. "Believe me, that's been on my mind constantly."

Serenity gave him a sorrowful look. She knew it would be. And from how tense Duke looked, he would drive himself towards another nervous breakdown if that was what it took to find something to save David. Serenity would definitely have to talk to him later.

Right now, however, they needed to keep looking.

xxxx

Downstairs, Bakura had been trying to search the main floor for Nesbitt, in the company of Oreo and Marik. When the phone rang, he snapped it up immediately. "Hello, Yami?" he greeted. Oreo meowed. "We're having a terrible time here!"

Yami Bakura growled. "And over here, Francoise Dove got up and has been doing something in his living room. I can see flashing blue and purple lights. I don't know if he's performing a voodoo ritual or having a private rave party; he has the curtains closed."

"Oh dear." Bakura bit his lip. "I wonder if he could have sent that horrible spirit to torture poor Lector. . . ."

"What happened?" Yami Bakura demanded.

Bakura quickly explained about the cruelty and Lector's collapse. "And Nesbitt is still missing!" he lamented. "We've been looking everywhere!"

Yami Bakura cursed in Egyptian. "I'd come back there, but I should try to figure out what this madman is doing."

"Oh yes, you'd better not leave," Bakura said. "But please be careful!"

"I will be," Yami Bakura assured him.

Bakura sighed and hung up. "It's so hard to know what's going on," he said. "We don't know if Mr. Dove is mixed up in this or not, or where Dr. Raven is, or if either of them sent that ghastly spirit. . . ."

"And I'm at my wit's end about Nesbitt," Marik frowned. "I guess that friend of Duke's wouldn't have any ideas of where we haven't looked. . . ."

"Oh! That's a good point," Bakura exclaimed. "It wouldn't hurt to try. I'll see if Duke can give us the number; he's probably too occupied to call right now." He swiftly texted Duke.

In a moment Duke replied with the number. He and the others were still looking for another spellbook, so he did indeed feel it would be better if someone else made the call.

"I hope they can find something," Bakura worried as he dialed.

Marik stood by with folded arms to wait.

Snakes sounded surprised when he answered. "Hello?"

"Hello, Mr. Tolliver," Bakura greeted. "I'm a friend of Duke's, Ryou Bakura. . . ."

"Oh. Hey there," Snakes said. "What do you need?"

"Well . . . it's a rather long and confusing story, but basically, we've lost Nesbitt in the house and we've been looking high and low for him for ages," Bakura said. "He's nowhere to be found! We're wondering whether he was spirited away by one of our enemies or if there's still someplace in the house we haven't looked."

"Oh boy. Hmm." Snakes hesitated. "Well, I'm pretty sure all the secret passages haven't been found. Ismael was sure there were some even he didn't know about. But aside from that . . . where was Nesbitt when he vamoosed?"

"Either in the second-story bathroom or on his way to the room he and Lector were sharing," Bakura said.

". . . Uh oh."

Both Bakura and Marik stiffened.

"What does that mean?" Marik spoke up.

"There's a chance that he . . . er . . . well, it's hard to even know how to explain this without sounding looney, but sometimes when we walked out of that bathroom, the whole floor plan was different," Snakes said.

"What?" Bakura gasped. "I know the ghosts trapped Gansley and Crump in an illusion once, where they thought the third floor looked different. . . ."

"This ain't no illusion," Snakes insisted. "This was real. All the rooms were different, and you couldn't leave the floor, and no matter how you wandered around, you could never find your way back."

"But you got back," Marik frowned.

"Yeah, and I don't know how," Snakes said. "Maybe it was just when the ghosts had finished having their fun with me. Suddenly I walked through the doorway of the bathroom again and everything was the way it was supposed to be."

"That's terribly frightening," Bakura exclaimed.

"I know. We were all freaked. And if you're thinkin' you can walk through the door and it'll happen to you so you can find Nesbitt, it probably won't," Snakes quickly added. "It never happened when we expected it to. It was only when we'd completely dropped our guard and almost forgot all about it that it happened again."

"Oh joy," Marik scowled.

"This is terrible," Bakura said. "I'm sure this is what must have happened to poor Nesbitt! It's about the only thing left that makes sense!"

"It doesn't make any sense to me, but if that's what happened, you're just gonna havta wait for the ghosts to spit him back out," Snakes said.

"But we don't have time to wait," Bakura cried, running his hand into his bangs. "A malevolent ghost pretended to be Nesbitt laying dead and it pushed poor Lector into a collapse. He's very ill. I'm afraid of what might happen to him if Nesbitt isn't found soon!"

Snakes gave a low whistle. "Oh brother. The ghosts aren't very cooperative, though, so I doubt they'll be moved by your problem. I guess all that's left is to pray."

"I suppose so," Bakura said in resignation. "Well, thank you, Mr. Tolliver. Please call back if you can think of anything else that might help us!"

"I will," Snakes promised. "But eh, you can just call me Snakes."

"Alright," Bakura said. "Goodbye." He hung up and groaned. "What are we ever going to do?!"

"I don't know," Marik said in discouragement. "Aside from praying, it sounds like there really isn't anything else to be done. And God doesn't always intercede; a lot of times He still leaves things up to people to solve."

"I know," Bakura sighed. "We've been praying and we haven't found Nesbitt yet. . . . But I will certainly try again. And then we'd better tell everyone else what Snakes told us."

Marik wasn't looking forward to that, but he agreed.

xxxx

Nesbitt felt like slamming the diary into the bed or the wall. Wandering around was no help, so by now he had thoroughly gone through all the entries without finding any clues as to how to get out of this mess. He didn't have the time or the patience to wait on the ghosts and be set free at their leisure. He was tired, and angry, and by now he knew Lector must be panic-stricken. Everyone else probably was too. He didn't want to be the cause of anything else happening to Lector! His poor friend had suffered quite enough as it was.

"Help," he whispered. "I don't know what else to do and I have to get back. . . ."

He got up, slowly walking across the windowless bedroom to the doorway once again. When he stepped out, the rooms had changed again, but still not to the correct ones. He snarled, hitting the wall in helpless aggravation.

"I need to get home," he said in desperation. "Everyone will be worried about me! But I know that doesn't mean anything to you. You probably want everyone to be miserable!" That sounded a lot like Yami Marik, actually. Hopefully this ghost and he would never meet.

At last in resignation he started peering into these new rooms, hoping against hope to find something useful he could bring back . . . if he ever got back. The rooms, like the others, were fashioned after the styles of many decades ago, probably around the time the house was first built.

How old was the house, anyway? It could have been built as far back as the 18th Century, even though it seemed like most of the records about it were from 1800s. That was a long time for ghosts to be allowed to roam free in the place. Had it been haunted from the time it was built? What if it was built over an old Native American cemetery? That was a tired cliche, but he supposed it really happened sometimes or it wouldn't have become a cliche at all.

"Even if you're angry about something that happened in the past, none of us were responsible," he tried again. "Why do you want to punish us for something we didn't do?!"

He cursed himself in the next instant. Hate was very blinding. He knew that all too well. All of the Big Five did. They had lashed out at Yugi and others who were not responsible for betraying them as Seto had. Maybe these spirits were doing the same thing.

"Alright, maybe we deserve to be the ones suffering for something we didn't do," he muttered. "But other people are getting caught up in it too! And Lector's already been through so much. . . . Can't you give him a break already?! Do you know what this day alone has been like for him?!"

A cold feeling flew into his heart like an arrow. Lector was indeed still going through so much. And the horrible feeling that was coming over Nesbitt now was that if he didn't find his way back, it might be too late.

"You have to let me go!" he burst out. "I have to go to him!"

He wasn't sure what had happened. Would him being missing have pushed Lector over the edge, or was there more to it? When the arrow had hit him, it had felt like the same thing had happened to Lector at that moment. Nesbitt didn't know or understand why, exactly, but he knew Lector was sick. And the more he stood there, increasingly panic-stricken, he felt like he had to go into a specific room.

Bewildered, he followed the prompting and did so. But nothing happened—it was still the same room he had already tried and failed to get any use out of before. He walked out again, and this time felt like he needed to go into another room, and then a third.

What was this? Some sort of puzzle or maze where the rooms had to be entered in a specific order to find the solution? It was starting to seem like that was exactly right. As he walked back out of the final room, the floor plan shifted back to the first alternate floor plan he had encountered. And that desperate feeling to get back to Lector only grew stronger, pulling him once again into the rooms in a certain order.

Would it work again? Could he trust that it would?

He took a deep breath as at last he walked through the bedroom door where he had found the diary. To his joyous eyes, it was now the bathroom. There was the sink, and the tub, and the cleaning supplies . . . ! Everything was just as he had left it. His heart swelled with joy and hopeful relief.

Finally he stepped into the hall. Now it was all familiar territory. He recognized what he could see of the rooms through their open doors. He was back.

"Lector!" he called as he ran down the hall. "Lector?!"

He wanted Lector to emerge from their room and demand to know where Nesbitt had been. Instead it was Gansley who came to the door, his eyes filled with stunned shock. "Nesbitt?! Where on Earth have you been?!" he cried. "Are you hurt?!"

"I'm fine, but where's Lector?!" Nesbitt demanded. "I know something's wrong!"

Gansley sighed. "You're right." He stepped aside to allow Nesbitt into the room.

Nesbitt went stiff at the sight of Lector laying so pale in the bed. "No. . . ." He ran in and over to Lector's side. "What happened?!"

Mokuba looked up with tear-filled eyes. "This ghost creep made Lector think you were pinned to the floor with some old sword," he said. "Lector couldn't take it and he collapsed!" From his expression, he wondered if they could really believe it was Nesbitt this time. "You're . . . really you, aren't you?" he quavered.

"Of course I'm really me!" Nesbitt exclaimed. He couldn't blame Mokuba for asking, but right now he was still reeling from the horrible news. He shakily reached and took Lector's hand. "How long has he been like this?!"

"Thirty minutes or more," Gansley said. "The doctor was very concerned. He . . . he wasn't sure Lector could survive the blow of thinking you'd been brutally murdered on top of everything else."

"No. . . ." Nesbitt gripped the limp hand tighter. "Lector, it's me," he choked out. "I'm not dead! I'm right here with you! I don't understand what happened to me; I got trapped in an alternate floor plan or something. But I found my way back. . . ." His voice caught in his throat. "Please . . . you have to find your way back too. . . ."

Gansley turned away. Nesbitt wouldn't ordinarily bare so much of his soul when others were around, and it felt intrusive to watch. But when the situation was dire, Nesbitt forgot all about his usual awkwardness and inhibitions. He just wanted their dear friend back.

Mokuba kept watching, hoping against hope that Nesbitt would get through to Lector and he would revive right away. But Lector remained still and Nesbitt could only choke on a despairing sob as he brought the cold hand to his forehead.

"You feel so cold," he lamented. "I shouldn't have left the room. . . . If I'd just changed clothes in the bedroom . . ." He leaned over his friend in desperation. "Lector, you have to fight! Everyone needs you! . . ." His voice dropped, but the lost helplessness was all too audible. "I . . . I need you too . . . so much. . . . I need you to come back."

Still nothing happened. But just as Crump and Johnson approached the room, agonizing over not having found Nesbitt, Lector's hand moved and the fingers tried to curl around Nesbitt's hand.

"Nesbitt?!" Crump and Johnson exclaimed in unison.

"Lector moved!" Mokuba exclaimed.

Gansley turned back with renewed hope.

Slowly Lector's eyes opened halfway. "Nesbitt," he whispered. "It's you. You're alright. . . ."

"Yeah," Nesbitt choked, his voice filling with joy. "And so are you." He bent over Lector and hugged him close.

Lector reached up and returned the embrace, clutching at Nesbitt with as much strength as he could muster as a tear of utter joy slipped from his eye.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

Even with Nesbitt's return, Lector was still very weak, as the doctor had warned. He didn't feel like getting up and he lay in the bed, resting but awake. But the color and warmth were returning to his skin, and he certainly looked buoyed up. Everyone there had checked in with him by now, overjoyed and relieved that he was out of immediate danger and that Nesbitt was indeed alive and well.

Nesbitt was still sitting at his side, shaken and disturbed by everything that had happened. By now he had explained it several times over to members of the group who came to the room, and he still didn't understand it any better than he had before explaining it the first time.

"I must have felt the moment when you collapsed," he said to Lector. "This horrible, cold feeling came over me and I knew you weren't well. It felt like if I didn't get back to you right then . . . it would be too late. And somehow . . . I know it doesn't sound logical, but that feeling guided me through the rooms in the right order so I could get through the maze and back to you."

"It makes sense enough to me," Lector said. "I needed you and you found your way back to me." He gave a tired but happy smile.

"Do you remember the order you went through the rooms, Nesbitt?" Gansley asked.

"Just in case someone else gets stuck and needs to know," Johnson added.

"I may have subconsciously memorized it, but consciously I didn't," Nesbitt said. "I was too focused on getting back to Lector."

"Well, that's alright," Gansley sighed. "Hopefully we won't need that information right away."

"Or ever," Lector said emphatically. "I wish Evangeline would move. . . ."

"I seriously consider it more and more," Evangeline sighed. She was holding one of Lector's hands, gently running her fingers over it.

"What happened to you after you collapsed?" Nesbitt asked, although part of him didn't want to know. "You felt so cold when I found you. . . ."

"Mostly I was just completely out of it," Lector said. "But I felt a darkness seeping through my body and into my very soul. The only thing that kept it from taking me over altogether was sensing that other loved ones were with me. But it was such a crushing blow thinking you'd been killed that it felt like my body was giving out on me."

"That's horrible!" Evangeline cried.

"That's what I was afraid of," Gansley said. "Thank God Nesbitt found his way back."

"But nothing else is resolved yet," Nesbitt worried. "And Lector, you're in no shape to do anything but rest!"

"I can't just lay here," Lector objected. "Maybe for the rest of the night, but then I have to get up and see what I can do to fix things."

"Lector, the doctor was talking about forcing you to rest with sedation," Gansley said. "You've been doing too much and suffering too much! You have to allow your body to heal."

"My body won't heal if my mind has unrest," Lector said. "I would rather try to quickly solve the problems here and then go home to rest. And I must say, I don't want to come back for a long time."

"Neither do we," Gansley said with a wry smirk.

"But we want what's best for you, Buddy," Crump said.

Johnson nodded. "The evidence is in, and it's far from only being circumstantial. You can't take any more, Lector. Who knows what these evil spirits will try to do next?! Evangeline's exorcist is trying to remove whichever one was so unspeakably cruel tonight, but he might not succeed."

"I pray he will." Lector tiredly closed his eyes. "I suppose none of the other branches of this mystery are any closer to being solved either."

"I'm afraid not," Gansley said. "Yami Bakura is still investigating Francoise Dove, but he hasn't checked in again yet. And David still has that blasted bracelet stuck on his arm."

Lector groaned and slowly shook his head. But then he smiled and looked to Nesbitt. "At least Nesbitt is back safe," he said fervently. "The other problems that seemed so overwhelming before don't seem as bad now. We'll fix them."

Nesbitt grunted. "We'd better."

"And you had better sleep." Gansley pushed himself to his feet. "Atem is keeping watch all night, and perhaps we should rotate doing the same thing."

"I'll take the first watch," Johnson volunteered.

"You're sure?" Crump said. "I can do it."

"I'll do it," Johnson said.

"And I guess I'd better get back to trying to find that counterspell," Evangeline said. She kissed Lector on the cheek. "Goodnight, Démas."

Lector smiled. "Goodnight."

The quartet headed for the door. "Goodnight," Gansley echoed as he looked back. "Stay safe now."

"We'll be fine," Nesbitt insisted. "I'll make sure of it." He waited until other Goodnights had been exchanged and they were alone, then started to get up from the chair. "Will you be alright if I go to the other bed, or would you rather I stay?"

"You can go," Lector said. "I know you're here in the room and you're safe."

Nesbitt slowly nodded. "Alright." He went around to the other bed and started to climb under the covers.

Lector turned in his bed to watch. His eyes sleepily closed and he smiled, at peace enough to sleep.

Nesbitt watched him for a long moment. He had almost lost that man. Who knew how long he would have held out, especially with something supernatural trying to force him down as well as the emotional devastation of his own body? It was too horrible to really think about for long.

They had just been talking not long ago about how far they had come. They had started out not liking each other at all and only working together because they had to. But now, Lector had been driven to a collapse because of his love for Nesbitt, and Nesbitt . . . well, he had been guided out of the mess he had been in because of the love and concern they shared for each other.

It all sounded so illogical, so unbelievable. And yet it was true.

Nesbitt settled down in the other bed, finally allowing sleep to sweep over him as well.

xxxx

Yami Bakura had decided that his best option was to go forward and try to find out what Francoise Dove was really doing in his living room. The blue and purple lights were so flashy, somehow they almost seemed like a red herring, something meant to drive scared people away.

The former tomb robber crept through the yard and up to the window, sidling up at the edge of the blind. From there, he could see a tiny scrap of living room. He almost snorted to see a Christmas tree in the corner, flashing blue and purple lights. Apparently Francoise Dove liked to celebrate long after the season.

He perked up at the man's voice. He was on the phone with someone. Not wanting to be caught by any police patrolling the area, Yami Bakura ducked under the window to listen.

"I have them all going," Francoise bragged. "They really think I'm some voodoo bokor. It didn't take much; just a suggestive drug for Marie to supplement your work, Dad!"

Yami Bakura stiffened. This was certainly interesting. But who was his father?

"They've been exposed to so much black magic, that's what they automatically think is going on anytime there's something weird now," Francoise giggled. "Soon we'll be married into the family and our problems will be over!"

Was this all it was? A gold-digger seeking the Leichter fortune? Yami Bakura frowned. Somehow he doubted it was that simple. After all, there really was black magic going on with Mrs. Leichter and everyone all over town who had started acting out. Was this a separate plot, or were they connected?

"So, when are you coming down here?" Francoise asked. "It's about time, don't you think? . . . You've already been causing chaos from a distance?! . . . That's great. I know your power gets stronger the closer you are to your victims. They won't know what hit them!"

Yami Bakura snarled. Now he had heard enough. It was time to intimidate this young man into some answers. He straightened, blasting the side door open with the Infinity Ring.

Francoise dropped his phone to the floor. "What the . . . ?!"

Yami Bakura strolled in, sneering at his prey. "It's confession time," he purred. "I heard you on the phone. Who is your father, and just how much has he been torturing the others?"

"I don't know what you're talking about!" Francoise cried. He stumbled up, backing against the wall. "I'll call the police and tell them you broke in just now!"

"Oh? And will you also tell them about _this?_" Yami Bakura willed his appearance to change in front of the horrified man's eyes. "Which man will you say broke in?"

"W-What?!" Francoise pointed at Yami Bakura with a shaking finger. "Hey, who are you?! What is this?!"

"I'm sure you're aware that I'm connected with the group staying in the old Leichter mansion," Yami Bakura said. "That's all you need to know for now." He strolled over, his red robe lightly fluttering with the breeze of his movement. As he approached, he placed a foot on the edge of the couch and leaned threateningly forward into Francoise's face. "Now, tell me what _I_ need to know."

"I really don't have anything to do with voodoo!" Francoise exclaimed. "It's all for show."

"I already heard you say you'd drugged Marie," Yami Bakura said. "I asked you about your father."

"M-My father really is into voodoo," Francoise said. "And he's out to get your friends. He did something really cruel to Démas Lector tonight."

"Ah. He was the one who sent that evil spirit to torment Lector and make him believe his friend was dead?" Yami Bakura leaned on the wall behind the couch with one hand.

"Yes . . . _yes!_" Francoise squirmed.

"I also heard you say that his power gets stronger as he gets closer to his victims," Yami Bakura said. "Exactly what is he planning to do so that we won't know what hit us?"

"I . . . I don't know!" Francoise insisted. "That's the truth! He didn't tell me all the details!"

"What about when he's arriving?" Yami Bakura demanded. "Surely you know that."

"He's on his way now!" Francoise said. "He's coming up on a ship!"

"Oh really?" Yami Bakura said. "What ship?"

"_The Star of New Orleans_," Francoise stammered.

"Will he be here as soon as tomorrow, do you think?"

"He should be," Francoise said. "But if he knew I was telling you all this, I'd be in really big trouble!"

"Oh, my heart breaks for you." Suddenly Yami Bakura reached down, grabbing a handful of the man's shirt and pulling him forward with a jerk. "Who is he and what does he have against us?!" he barked. "This isn't adding up. If you're planning to marry into the family, you'll inherit a portion of the fortune. Isn't that good enough?"

Francoise yelped. "He wants us to get it all!" he exclaimed. "And the only way to do that is to ruin or spell the entire family so I'm the only fit heir after I marry Marie!"

"You're not Germaines?!" Yami Bakura scrutinized him with a suspicious frown.

"N-No!" Francoise exclaimed. "All their revenge stuff is stupid! We do stuff for valuable reasons, like money!"

"Then you don't know anything about Dr. Raven's escape from prison?" Yami Bakura closed one eye and continued to bore into the sniveling coward's soul.

"No!" Francoise insisted again. "It was just a weird coincidence that played right into our plans!"

"Hmm." Yami Bakura let him drop back to the couch. "Could he have learned that another powerful voodoo sorcerer was coming and he broke out of prison to match wits with your father? I can't imagine he would want to share power."

"I don't think so either!" Francoise sputtered. "I guess it's possible that he learned. . . . But if he had the power to break out, why didn't he do it before?!"

"Yes, that is one of the questions that's puzzling us," Yami Bakura mused. His expression darkened again. "What about the people all over the city?" he demanded. "Did your father spell them?"

"Yes, he did!" Francoise said. "It was mainly a smokescreen; he really just wanted the Leichters to flip out. But he thought it wouldn't look personal if people all over the city started acting strange too!"

Yami Bakura wasn't sure he believed that, but for the moment it did seem to fit with the rest of this tale. "Your father is quite a cold and calculating man," he said. "But he's still no match for me and the others. He will regret getting in our way." He leaned in close again. "And Démas Lector's best friends will never let him off the hook easily for everything he's caused. You can be sure that he's going to pay for what he's done. And the both of you will be arrested. Tell me, how long will the drug last in Marie's system?"

"It'll be gone by morning," Francoise said. "But then I'll be there to give her more."

"Not this time." The Infinity Ring started to glow. Francoise screamed. When the beam faded, he was slumped back into the couch, blankly staring at nothing.

"Enjoy the Shadow Realm," Yami Bakura growled. "Don't worry; you'll be retrieved to stand trial later. You may decide you prefer prison to what you'll go through now."

Atem probably would have used a Mind Crush, he mused as he looked around the room. But that really wasn't his way. Maybe some time in the Shadow Realm would scare that man into wanting to turn over a new leaf. The Ring wasn't burning him up, so it must have decided that his intentions made his act excusable. Right now he needed to see if there was anything here that could shed more light on their mysteries.

He switched back to his Bakura's brother form and opened the desk.

xxxx

Many of the house's current residents were still awake by the time Yami Bakura got back. He muttered to himself and walked in, pocketing the keys for the rental van.

Bakura heard the door and hurried over, Oreo in his arms. "Oh Yami, thank goodness you're back!" he exclaimed. "What happened?"

"It's a long and strange story," Yami Bakura growled. "I may have some answers that will help us and I may not."

As the others who were awake trickled into the living room, Yami Bakura began to recount the conversation he'd had with Francoise Dove.

Evangeline snorted. "Well, that figures that he's a fake. I guess I should be angrier at him doing such sleazy things to marry into the family, but honestly, it sort of feels like he would fit right in with most of them!"

"I'm more concerned about his mysterious father," Atem said. "So he was the one who tortured Lector tonight. We must be on our guard every moment!"

"At least I found a picture of him, so we can watch for him to get off that boat tomorrow," Yami Bakura said, and held up the snapshot.

"Excellent!" Atem took the picture. "Does he look familiar to either of you?" He showed it to Evangeline and Angelique. Evangeline gave it a blank stare, but Angelique stiffened.

"I . . . I think he came to see Dr. Raven sometimes," she stammered.

"No way!" Joey exclaimed. "Were they working together, or were they rivals?!"

"They sounded more like rivals, and unfriendly ones at that," Angelique said. "It seemed like Dr. Raven was always worried about being outdone and losing his chance to rule the world."

"Oh, well, that's just great," Joey scowled.

Atem frowned. "We must meet that boat in the morning. Do you know what time it docks?"

"No," Yami Bakura grunted.

"I can find out easily enough," Seto said. He took out his phone.

"Isn't it dangerous to have left that man roaming around?" Evangeline said in concern.

"Well, right now we can't turn him over to the police. We have no proof of his words." Yami Bakura turned away with a shrug. "I sent his soul to the Shadow Realm."

Atem facepalmed. "Bakura . . . !"

"I would say it was justified under the circumstances," Yami Bakura grunted. "I'll get him back once we have the proof we need to send him to prison. Probably."

Bakura sighed. "Well, the Infinity Ring must have felt you didn't do wrong, Yami." He scratched Oreo under her chin while she purred away.

"I'm still not sure I understand all this talk of souls and Shadow Realms, but I _am_ sure he deserved it," Evangeline said with a sigh of her own. "And unfortunately, we haven't had any luck finding another volume of the family spellbook, so we still don't know how to get that stupid bracelet off of David. I'm trying to find a _mambo_ to help us now."

"Well, while you do that, I think I'm going to handcuff myself to a bed and get some sleep," David said. "This day really has felt eons long."

"There'd just better be a solution in the morning," Duke said.

"I will do everything I can to make sure there is," Evangeline told him. "Goodnight, everyone."

The group slowly started to disperse. Before any of them had got far, Seto announced, "The boat docks at 10 A.M. at the Port of New Orleans."

Joey yawned. "So _The Star of New Orleans_ docks at the Port of New Orleans? Or is that _The Port of New Orleans_ docks at the star of . . . nevermind." He stumbled towards the stairs. "It's bed for me, folks. And them ghosts had better stay away from me gettin' a good night's sleep!"

"You screaming about the ghosts had better not keep me from getting a good night's sleep," Tristan countered.

"Oh, you're a real riot," Joey snapped.

Serenity giggled, but soon sobered. "After what had happened to Mr. Lector, it seems like there's probably a lot of good reasons to scream if the ghosts are around. . . ."

"Well, I don't know if I'd go that far, but something's sure up with those ghosts," Mai frowned.

Mokuba shuddered. "Definitely."

"Stay safe, my friend," Marik said in concern.

"You bet!" Mokuba promised.

Serenity followed Duke and David upstairs to their room. "Are you two going to be okay?" she asked in concern.

Duke sighed. "As okay as we can be, I guess."

"I was serious about the handcuffs," David said. "I found these in the attic." He held up a set of toy handcuffs, complete with the key hanging from the lock.

Serenity blinked. "Do you really think those are safe? I mean, it would be so easy to lose the key. Or what if one of the ghosts decides to come in and unlock you, hoping you'll cause trouble?"

David cringed. "We have to try something," he said.

"If we were in a sitcom, we'd know something would go wrong," Duke said. ". . . Although our track record in real-life isn't much better." He grimaced.

"Well, I'm sure Dukey-Boy won't lose the key, will you?" David said, looking to his friend.

"Not if I can help it," Duke grunted.

Suddenly David looked serious. "All kidding aside, this really is a bad situation. I just can't risk hurting anyone. That's why I have to do this."

"Do you really think you can sleep wearing that, though?" Serenity asked.

"At least I'll have a chance," David said. "Without them, I probably wouldn't get any sleep out of worry."

Serenity tried to smile. "Okay then. I'll see you two in the morning." Now wasn't the time to try to talk to Duke. And from David's expression, he was probably already planning to do that himself.

Duke smiled back. "Goodnight," he said. He waited until she disappeared into her and Téa's room before heading into his with David.

David let the door close, but didn't lock it. Instead, he leaned on it with folded arms. "Don't run yourself ragged, Duke," he pleaded. "I'm going to be alright this time."

"I know you're going to be alright," Duke retorted. "I won't let anything happen to you again." He clenched his fists. "In the morning we'll go see that _mambo_ or whoever. Maybe that Mama Lola person Ishizu and Rishid met last year can help. Someone _has_ to help!"

"One way or another, we'll get this off," David said. He started unbuttoning his shirt to change for bed. "But Duke, you saw what happened to Lector. I don't want anything like that happening to you. You ran yourself into the ground just like that when I was . . . when you were trying to bring me back."

Duke looked away. He didn't like to talk about that. "I don't know how the Big Five haven't all cracked up by now," he confessed. "When you died . . . and I couldn't deal with it . . . I just burned out. Then we went through all that stress thinking you'd die again if time unraveled and everyone's memories came back. . . ." He gripped his arms. "I can't take anything else happening to you! I just can't!"

"I'm not thrilled about it either," David said. "And I can't say I'm glad it's me and not you, because you'd have a brickload of stress either way."

"I know." Duke heaved a sigh and turned back. "But it is you, and I should be telling you everything's going to be fine, instead of you trying to comfort me."

"Like I said, you're suffering too," David said. "We've been trying to comfort each other. How's that?"

"I guess so." Finally Duke crossed to his suitcase and opened it, taking out his sleep clothes.

When David had fully changed into pajamas, he laid down on the bed and raised the hand without the bracelet over his head. "Do you want to do the honors, Duke?"

Sighing, Duke snapped one handcuff around David's wrist and the other around one of the spokes of the headboard. "If you need to get up for some reason, just wake me and I'll bring the key," he said as he took it.

David looked away so he wouldn't see where Duke put it. That wasn't information he wanted to have if something suddenly took him over. "I'll be okay," he said.

Duke knew he meant about more than that. He finished getting ready for bed and then sank into the other mattress. It felt so good to rest his aching muscles, in spite of all the chaos and worry still going on around them. He doubted, however, that he would sleep.

xxxx

Seto was worried likewise about Mokuba as they went into their room. "Are you sure you're alright, kid?" he asked with a frown.

Mokuba looked up with a surprised blink. "Sure, Seto. I mean . . . I guess I'm as alright as I can be. There's still a whole bunch of stuff going wrong, and it sounds like it's going to be scary tomorrow. But Lector and Nesbitt are okay, and that's what I want to think about."

"You saw something terrible tonight," Seto said. "And I won't forgive that phantom for doing that to you."

Mokuba shuddered. "I don't even wanna think about that."

Seto sighed. It was hard to argue with that, especially when that was the attitude he took on almost everything himself. "I understand, as I'm sure you know," he said. "But just let me know if you want to talk about it."

Mokuba gave him a genuine smile. "Okay."

Soon they had both settled into bed and were trying to relax. But now that Mokuba was trying not to think of anything except sleep, his mind was pulling up the haunting images and sounds he had wanted to forget. Nesbitt pinned to the floor with a sword . . . the sound of Lector's poor body hitting the floor as he collapsed. . . . Blood everywhere. . . .

Mokuba turned and buried himself in the pillow with a muffled sob.

_Please don't let any more awful things happen to any of us,_ he prayed._ Give us a break. Please!_

He could sense Seto getting up and coming over, even though Seto was moving almost silently. "I'm right here if you want me," the teen said as he sat down in the chair by the bed.

Mokuba looked up. "Seto. . . ." He was soon in Seto's arms, shaking from horror at the memories. "Why did that ghost do that?" he whispered. "Lector didn't deserve it! He didn't. . . ."

"Neither did you," Seto said darkly as he held the child close. "And there probably aren't any real answers. That ghost just wanted to cause pain. He's probably hateful or sadistic for no real reason."

"I guess. . . ." Mokuba sighed. "I wish I could do more to help. . . ."

"Right now, the best thing you can do is try to sleep," Seto said. "I'll stay up with you."

"You need to sleep too, Seto," Mokuba objected.

"I will," Seto said. "But I won't be able to as long as you're upset and awake."

Mokuba managed a small smirk. "Okay, I'll try." He climbed back into the bed and pulled the covers up around himself. But then he could only sigh as he stared at the ceiling. "I wish we could have that peace Shadi talked about," he whispered. "But there's always some new enemy or something else going wrong. We'll never have peace!"

"It doesn't seem like it, does it," Seto said. "I don't know what to think. The peace Shadi talked about might only be a fable." Part of him felt bad to tell Mokuba that, but the other part knew he needed to consider that possibility.

"I don't want to believe that," Mokuba said. "I don't know how much more any of us can take if things don't stop going wrong!"

Seto didn't know either. Mokuba had certainly seen far more than any child his age should ever have to see, and it worried Seto every day. All he had wanted was for Mokuba to be able to enjoy his childhood as Seto had never been able to, but the peace never lasted long enough.

Mokuba sighed, knowing it was a hopeless conversation without real answers. "Well . . . maybe things will go better tomorrow," he said.

"Maybe," Seto said.

Mokuba reached over and took Seto's hand. When he finally slipped to sleep, he was still holding onto it.

Not wanting to let go and possibly wake him up, Seto sat there for some time, holding the small hand and losing himself in thought. But at last he slipped Mokuba's hand under the covers and quietly went to the other bed.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes: Thanks to Azalea542 for plot help!**

**Chapter Twelve**

Nesbitt woke up during the night, when Lector was still sleeping. He turned over, looking at his friend in the other bed. Lector still seemed peaceful, to Nesbitt's relief. He even looked like he was smiling.

_My presence could do that, _Nesbitt silently thought. _It means that much to Lector whether I'm alright._

What Nesbitt had been thinking of just that night, needing to take care of himself because his loved ones would suffer if he didn't, had come back to him very poignantly, in a way he had never expected nor wanted. To see Lector so ill and know that thinking Nesbitt was hurt or dead was the cause was overwhelming. Nesbitt had only just recently managed to start acknowledging that he was a good person. And he and Lector had been talking about the need to look after oneself for the sake of loved ones right before the ghosts had cruelly pulled him away and locked him in that alternating floor plan. That was probably even why they done it. Words were not sacred. The ghosts probably eavesdropped on everything to find new ways to torture everyone.

The ghosts who lived here seemed so unconcerned with them, all except the one who had helped out before and guided Nesbitt to Lector. But judging from the diary he had found, at least one ghost had been playing pranks involving alternate floor plans since the 19th Century, if not longer. Was that the one who had driven Lector to collapse? Or had that one really been sent by Dr. Raven or even another enemy? Maybe something new had been learned while they had been sleeping.

Nesbitt sighed and laid back in the bed. He was almost afraid to get up and leave the room in case the trick would be pulled again. And Lector was such a light sleeper that he might wake up the moment Nesbitt would try to leave. He needed rest so badly.

Someone would surely look in on them before too long and Nesbitt could ask them what was going on. Maybe for now, he should try to sleep more himself. Sighing, he closed his eyes and tried to relax.

A new thought popped into his mind and his eyes flew open again. Was Lector's vindictive ex-fiancée Darcy Broussard still in a Mind-Crushed coma? What if she had emerged and was still hateful and bitter? She could have sent the cruel spirit. She had tried before to hurt Lector through his love for Nesbitt. It was something to look into, at least.

The door quietly eased open and he perked up, watching it with intense eyes. When Johnson peered in, he relaxed.

"I didn't wake you?" he whispered.

"No," Nesbitt whispered back. He got up and walked over to the doorway. Lector's sleep problems were almost legendary; Nesbitt didn't want to risk waking him up. But on the other hand, he didn't want to leave Lector alone in the room either. Who knew what the cruel ghosts might do to him. Nesbitt might return only to find Lector gone, trapped in the alternating floor plan.

From Johnson's expression, he was thinking very similar things. He stayed in the doorway to talk and kept a close eye on Lector.

"Evangeline's exorcist is still here," he said softly.

Nesbitt grimaced. "He can't find the ghost?"

"He thinks he's found the right one, but it's putting up a fight." Johnson shuddered. "I hope we won't all suffer for it. . . ."

"I don't want to leave Lector," Nesbitt growled, "but you shouldn't be alone either! Keep watch in here."

"I was about to switch with Crump," Johnson said. He hesitated, nervously adjusting his glasses as he looked Nesbitt up and down. There was definitely something on his mind, but much like Nesbitt himself, he felt too embarrassed to say it.

"What is it?" Nesbitt asked.

Johnson opened his mouth, then closed it again and shook his head. "No . . . it's too ridiculous. You're fine. . . ."

"Johnson . . . ?!" Nesbitt grabbed for his friend's wrist. But even as he did, Johnson's words fully processed and Nesbitt understood. ". . . You saw that sick illusion too. . . ."

Johnson gave a miserable nod. "You were laying on the floor with that sword going all the way through you. . . . Blood was everywhere. . . ." He had to turn away. Just thinking of it again made him feel like he was going to . . .

". . . I'm sorry," Nesbitt said. "I can't imagine how horrible that was for all of you. . . . You look like you're turning green. . . ."

Johnson looked back. "I started to doze off and I saw it again, in my dreams. . . ." He shifted, his eyes filled with awkward embarrassment. If he was talking to one of the others, they might be able to discern what he wanted without him having to specify, but when he was talking to Nesbitt, that was unlikely. They were both very confused by and reluctant to admit to certain feelings. Johnson was supposed to be smooth and Nesbitt was supposed to be logical. They weren't supposed to break. They usually didn't. But when they did, it was bad.

Indeed, Nesbitt could tell Johnson wanted something, but he wasn't sure what, nor was he sure how to ask. "I have that a lot," he said. "It's Hell."

Johnson finally drew a shaking breath. "Nesbitt . . . I know this is an outlandish request, but . . . will you let me see that you really don't have any wounds?"

Nesbitt jerked and stared at him in disbelief. "You want me to . . . ?!"

"Please," Johnson said.

Part of Nesbitt wanted to say that was absolutely ridiculous and of course Johnson could see there were no wounds! But the other part had to admit he understood. When Gansley had returned in that horrible Shadow Game last year, Nesbitt hadn't been able to forget the sight of him mortally wounded. It had seemed like it just couldn't be. So, finally, still somewhat reluctantly, he lifted the bottom of his tank top enough to show that his stomach had not been pierced. Then, supposing Johnson wanted him to be thorough, he turned around to show that his back was whole as well.

Johnson finally breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you. I'm sorry, Nesbitt. I know that was out of order and you could have most certainly raised an objection . . ."

"No," Nesbitt cut in. "I get it." He let his shirt drop back down. "And I'm sorry I put everyone through that. If I had been more careful and not let myself get spirited away, that ghost couldn't have pulled his cruel trick."

"It wasn't your fault," Johnson insisted. "Who would think just going into the bathroom to change clothes would be dangerous?!"

"I won't make that mistake again," Nesbitt grunted. He felt like not setting foot in that bathroom again. Going up to the third floor or down to the first floor sounded much safer.

From Johnson's expression, he was having similar thoughts. "Well . . . I'll go get Crump," he said. "Stay safe."

Nesbitt nodded. "Try to get some rest. I'm going back to bed."

He walked back to the bed and sank down on the edge of it. In one way he was surprised Lector hadn't woke up even with a whispered conversation going on. But maybe he was just so exhausted that for once he would sleep well. He definitely looked peaceful.

Finally Nesbitt laid back down and drew the quilt over him. He wasn't sure if he would go back to sleep yet, but he would try.

xxxx

David wasn't sure if he had ever been asleep or not. But suddenly he was fully awake with a start, inadvertently jerking the wrist that bore the handcuff. He grimaced as it pulled taut against his skin. Maybe that hadn't been the best idea.

He looked towards the window. Still dark. And it sounded like a voice coming through the vents. When he paused to listen, he could make out enough to realize it was Evangeline's exorcist, still working on getting rid of the evil spirit. He shuddered.

Coming to think of it . . . why were they relying on what that nutcase Amelia said anyway? She might have lied in delight about only the owner of the binding bracelet or a practitioner of uncorrupted _vodun_ being able to get the thing off. Maybe someone like the exorcist could too.

David frowned to himself. In the past he would have thought of someone like the exorcist first, but after being caught up in so many bizarre magical adventures, it was hard not to think of other things as the first solution to their problems.

He tugged on the handcuff. Still firmly fastened, as he had hoped it would be. But now, ironically, he wanted to get free. "Duke!" he hissed. "Are you awake?"

Duke groaned and turned onto his back. "Yeah. . . ."

"I just thought of something," David told him. "We really shouldn't accept anything Amelia told us hook, line, and sinker. She loves to watch people suffer almost as much as Yami Marik does! Remember what Johnson and Crump told us about her laughing when Crump and Kaiba were locked in the freezer! And she played games with truth and lies later."

Duke looked over, blinking sleepy eyes at him. "So?"

"So I'd like to get free and see if Evangeline's exorcist could help me," David said, tugging on the handcuff again in emphasis. "He's still here!"

Now Duke was fully awake. "That's a great idea!" he exclaimed. "Let's do it!" Invigorated by the hope that this madness might be able to be solved quicker than they had thought, he leaped up and came over to the other bed with the key. Soon David was loose and hurrying towards the door. Duke pocketed the key and went after him.

Atem was still awake and standing guard, this time near the stairs. He looked up with a start as the boys approached. "What is it?" he asked in surprise.

"We're looking for the exorcist," Duke said. "We need to see if he can get this thing off David's wrist!"

Atem still looked uncertain. "But I thought only a practitioner of voodoo could do that?"

"David reminded me that it was Amelia who said that," Duke said. "She's never been trustworthy, so we shouldn't just figure she's telling the truth."

Now Atem's eyes glittered with understanding. "Ah! I see. Yes, you're right. Well, I believe he's downstairs somewhere. The ghost seemed to have materialized down there, unless he's just toying with the man."

David cringed. He really didn't want to encounter a ghost as cruel as the one who had tormented Lector that night. But if that was the only way to see the exorcist, it would have to be done. "We'll just go down and see," he said, and started down the stairs.

Duke followed after him. By now almost everyone had gone to bed, or it seemed so, since hardly anyone was around. Or maybe, Duke thought wryly, everyone was hiding from the ghost.

The closer they drew to the downstairs study, the colder the air became. David shivered, tensely alarmed by the chill. Duke went out ahead of him and pushed the half-open door the rest of the way open. "Hello?"

The harried priest looked up. "Hello. . . . I'm sorry, but I still haven't managed to get this spirit out of here. It's a very hate-filled and malicious creature."

"Well, actually . . ." David held up his wrist. "We were wondering if you could do anything about this?"

The priest stared at the beads. "Is that a binding bracelet?!"

"Unfortunately, yes," David sighed. "It somehow flew onto my wrist when we were at Dr. Raven's old voodoo shop tonight."

"Then that must be how the spirit gained entry to the house!" the priest exclaimed. "It came back with the bracelet!"

"What?!" Duke stared at him. "That Francoise guy said his dad put the spirit up to what it did!"

"Perhaps that man communicated with the spirit and told it about what he wanted it to do to Mr. Lector," the priest suggested. "If he knew the spirit had access to a binding bracelet and could follow the wearer home, he would very likely think that was a perfect opportunity for mayhem!"

David paled. "So then it's because of me that it had the opportunity to hurt Lector the way it did?"

"You were certainly not responsible," the priest insisted.

"But I thought a binding bracelet was a way of controlling whoever had it on," Duke frowned. "It hasn't tried once to control David!"

"It's also a way of binding a spirit to your location," the priest said. "Apparently it had no interest in controlling your friend. It just wanted a way out of the shop where it was trapped. By affixing the bracelet to David, it could go wherever he went."

"Well, can you get it off?!" David exclaimed.

"I certainly hope so," the priest replied.

Removing the bracelet was not an easy task. The spirit quickly caught on to what was happening and began trying every method it could think of to attack as soon as the priest attempted to pray over the bracelet.

"Look out!" Duke yelled as a table shot across the room.

The priest leaped out of the way and narrowly missed it.

David stared in shock. "Maybe we should go outside," he exclaimed. "If the spirit is bound to me, it'll have to go outside if I do, won't it?!"

"What if it knocks a tree over?!" Duke countered.

David blanched. "Could it really have that much power?!"

The priest frowned. "Probably not, but I wouldn't say it's impossible."

"Oh, well, that's really encouraging!" Duke spat. "What are we going to do then?!"

The room started to shake. Duke pitched backwards, while David fell forward and the priest grabbed a chair.

"I think . . . we don't have a great deal of choice!" the priest exclaimed. "One way or another, this spirit must be stopped. And I don't think we'll even be able to get outside!" He struggled to his feet and desperately began the prayer again.

Still sprawled on the floor, David looked to Duke. "Do you think the room's really shaking, or could it be an illusion?!"

"I guess we'll know if everybody else starts yelling about it in terror," Duke retorted.

"It might be hard to hear them over _me_ yelling in terror," David quipped. But he wasn't sure he was kidding.

xxxx

Crump was just leaving his room and going to check on Lector and Nesbitt when the house began its violent thrashing. He fell hard against the wall with a shocked yelp. "What the heck is happening?!" he bellowed.

Doors up and down the hall flew open as the rooms' occupants wondered the same thing. "Are there earthquakes in New Orleans?!" Téa wailed.

"This isn't an earthquake!" Evangeline exclaimed.

"Well, you coulda fooled me!" Joey hugged the wall as pictures and furniture fell down around him. "What is it then?!"

"I think it's something supernatural!" Angelique cried.

"No way!" Téa stared at her in horror. "What kind of supernatural force could do this?!"

"A very angry and powerful evil spirit!" Angelique said.

"Like the one who was so cruel to Mr. Lector?!" Serenity gasped.

"It's possible!" Angelique told her.

Mokuba looked up at Seto with terrified eyes. "What are we gonna do, big brother?!"

Seto clenched his teeth and held Mokuba close. "I don't know that there's anything we can do!" he replied. "Not unless the Big Five and I can get downstairs with our rings. . . ."

"Where's Atem?!" Téa wondered. "Maybe he's downstairs and can do something!"

"I don't know where he is!" Yugi realized. "He was keeping watch over things, but he could be anywhere! He was trying to patrol all over the house!"

Yami Bakura appeared and immediately fought to get to the stairs in spite of the furious shaking. "I'm most certainly going to do something!" he snarled.

"Be careful, Yami!" Bakura exclaimed. He held Oreo close as the terrified cat yowled.

In Lector and Nesbitt's room, Lector jerked awake with widened, shocked eyes. "What is going on?!" he burst out. He threw the covers back and leaped out of bed quicker than he should have. He stumbled, nearly falling back against the bed.

Nesbitt, who hadn't made it back to sleep, was up in an instant and struggling to his friend's side amid the violent rocking of the house. "You shouldn't be up!" he yelled.

"How do you expect me to stay down with all this going on?!" Lector shot back.

Nesbitt growled and draped Lector's arm around his shoulders before any protests could be made. "Come on then," he said, and firmly brought his arm around Lector's waist to further support the wobbly man.

Lector quickly walked with Nesbitt to the doorway and then into the hall. "What's going on?!" he demanded of everyone.

"We dunno!" Crump said. "Some evil spirit or something!"

Johnson was trying to keep Gansley from falling. "Somehow we need to get downstairs and try to help!" he said. "But under these circumstances, there's no way you could make it down the stairs without falling over!"

Gansley growled, but didn't argue the point.

"Why does everybody think it's downstairs anyway?!" Joey wondered.

"Because it feels like it's shaking everything from the foundation up!" Tristan said.

". . . Good enough reason," Joey conceded.

Suddenly Serenity looked around. "Where's Duke and David?! They haven't come out of their room!"

Marik frowned, looking over his shoulder. "I don't think they're in their room!" The door was open, revealing the space beyond was devoid of people.

"Then they must be downstairs! Maybe they're right with whatever this is!" Serenity was going for the stairs in the next instant.

"Serenity!" Joey exclaimed. He promptly chased after her. Yugi, Tristan, and Téa followed.

"Alright." Evangeline straightened. "I'm going down there too! This is my house and I won't stand for this!" She kept hold of the wall until she reached the railing overlooking the ground floor, and held onto it as she made her way to the stairs.

"Wait for me!" Angelique went after her.

Seto growled. "We need to get down there," he said, looking to the Big Five. "Gansley, are you sure you can't make it?"

"No, I'm not, but regardless, I need to try anyway," Gansley replied. "The house isn't shaking as badly now."

"Yeah, I wonder why," Mokuba frowned.

"Perhaps the spirit's attention is being divided," Ishizu suggested.

"Then let's divide it some more!" Crump started for the stairs, then paused. "Wait a minute! Lector, you're in no shape to use your ring at all!"

"I have to be," Lector retorted. "I won't have this . . . whatever it is triumph because of me!"

Seto grunted. "He'll keep insisting on it and we don't have time to waste."

Nesbitt's grip tightened. He didn't like the idea at all. The way Lector had looked when Nesbitt had made it back and saw him lying there . . . that had been horrible. And he couldn't forget that once, Lector had run himself ragged overusing his ring until collapsing from using up all of his strength. Lector's strength was already gone this time. He couldn't risk the ring.

"We don't have to all be together if we're not summoning our monsters," Gansley said. "Those who can make it down, go! Any who can't will stay behind and . . . pray for their success or some such."

"You're on!" Crump was hurrying down the stairs in the next instant.

"Are you still planning on coming?" Johnson asked Gansley.

"Yes," Gansley said.

Nesbitt looked to Lector. "If I let you go, will you stay up here with Mokuba?"

Lector hesitated. He wanted to help. But he was also remembering the night he had drained his energy using his ring. He wouldn't be any use to anyone if he was still badly drained from the day's disasters, and when he tried to think of using his ring now, just the thought of it almost made him feel like collapsing again.

"Alright," he said at last. "I'll stay . . . unless there's absolutely no choice."

Nesbitt growled. "I guess that's the best answer I can get from you." He eased back from Lector and allowed Rishid to come over and support him. Then he was racing for the stairs as well.

"You stay too, Mokuba," Seto ordered.

Mokuba sighed, but knew better than to protest right now. "Okay. But be careful, Seto!"

"I will," Seto said, and thundered down the stairs behind Nesbitt.

Gansley looked back to Lector. "Hopefully this won't take long."

"It had better not, or I'll insist on trying to help," Lector said.

Johnson had to smile a bit. "Of course you will." He stayed with Gansley as the older man moved slowly down the stairs.

Lector watched until they were safely at the bottom. Then he sighed. He felt so helpless. A prayer ran through his mind and his heart as he and the others left behind waited and watched.

xxxx

Yami Bakura snarled as he reached the bottom and found the calamity in the study. Atem was also running over from another direction, and he stopped and gasped. "Oh no!"

The priest was desperately continuing to recite the prayers and perform the ritual, even as the shaking threw him off-balance and some other, unknown factor was beginning to choke off his air. Duke and David were both sprawled on the floor, not sure it was worth trying to get up when they'd likely only be thrown again. Both looked like they might be praying as well.

"What kind of evil spirit could have this much power?!" Atem exclaimed.

"You know, it's possible that this is an illusion, the same as everything happening in the shop was," Yami Bakura pointed out. "It would take a powerful illusion to affect everyone in the house, but it isn't out of the realm of possibility."

Atem's eyes widened. "Of course! That must be what it is!"

Many of the rest of the group began to catch up, some in time to hear Atem's words.

"It's not real?!" Serenity gasped. She ran inside and over to Duke.

"It seems likely," Atem said. "And if it isn't, somehow we have to ignore it."

"Are you crazy?!" Joey exclaimed. "This isn't like somethin' where you can close your eyes and it'll go away!"

"But it's definitely not as strong as it was before," Atem said. "The spirit's attention is diverted towards the priest. Everyone with magic, let's try to overwhelm the spirit so its concentration will divide even more! Everyone without magic . . . pray!"

"We can't even see the thing!" Crump said. "We don't know where to direct the blasts!"

"Then let's try shielding the priest," Yami Bakura suggested. "That should give the spirit something to think about."

Crump looked doubtfully at his ring. "Do these things have shielding magic? I know Atem does, but we've only been able to blast away."

"Let's try anyway," Gansley said. "Perhaps if we all will it so, the rings will activate and follow our commands."

All those who could do so complied, forcing their concentration and will into the magical objects they held. And as they did, a barrier began to form around the priest. He gasped, finally free of the vise around his throat. Now he could pray without the spirit interrupting.

"I can feel an evil energy in the air!" Atem exclaimed. "The spirit is coming out!"

"Its power is weakening!" Yami Bakura announced.

"Who are you?!" Yugi demanded as the dark silhouette of a man began to materialize.

The spirit snarled at him in another language.

"Haitian Creole," Evangeline whispered. "He didn't answer your question; he just spat obscenities at you." She stepped forward, eyes flashing. "I demand you get out of this house immediately! We don't want you here and we won't stand for it!"

"Look out, Evangeline!" Serenity cried. Now the spirit was lunging for her.

At the same moment, the priest finished his prayer. The spirit's attention wasn't on him at all, and the bracelet slipped off of David's wrist, breaking into pieces. With one hateful roar, the spectre vanished. As it did, the house came to a standstill.

Joey looked around in confusion and amazement. "Is it over?!"

"I think so," Téa said.

Duke immediately looked to David. "Are you okay?!"

"I'm fine now." David sighed in relief, running a hand over his wrist. "I'm glad I thought to ask the priest for help."

"So am I," said the priest. "I wouldn't have been able to get rid of the spirit without attacking the source of its power—your bracelet."

"Thanks a lot," David said in all sincerity. "It definitely wasn't my idea of a good fashion statement." He looked to the floor. "What should we do with these beads?"

"I'll take them and cleanse them," the priest replied. He bent down to gather them.

"Thank you so much," Evangeline said.

The priest looked up at her. "My child, you and your loved ones have far more trouble with evil spirits than is ordinary," he remarked. "Can you think of anything you could do to stem the flow of their treachery?"

"Yes," Evangeline immediately answered. "Catch the ones siccing them on us!"

"That's a good plan!" Joey said.

"Nesbitt? Everyone?"

They looked up with a start as Lector limped slowly into the room, his eyes filled with concern. Mokuba and the Ishtars were right near him.

"Seto!" Mokuba exclaimed. He ran to his brother's side and Seto held him close.

"I'm fine," he said.

"We're all fine," Nesbitt said, and went over to Lector. "You should sit down!"

Lector relaxed. "Thank God." He smiled at Nesbitt. "I'm alright."

Nesbitt didn't look convinced.

"We had all better get some sleep to be ready to meet that boat in the morning," Yami Bakura growled.

Everyone agreed that was a good idea. But though they wished their troubles were over, they knew it was very likely that morning would bring new chaos and enemies.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes: Thanks to Azalea542 for plot help!**

**Chapter Thirteen**

Miraculously, sleep did come for everyone in the house. With the evil spirit gone, it was certainly easier to relax and let the blanket of sleep drift over them. Some were still awake in the morning before they would really need to be, while others slept on until it was practically time to leave to meet the boat. Seto had already taken some of the group and gone early, while the rest were left behind to do as they pleased.

Nesbitt was amazed when he stirred and found Lector actually still asleep. That was certainly rare, considering the poor man's many sleep problems. But he certainly needed the rest, and Nesbitt was gratified to see that he was actually getting it. Apparently his body had decided to be kind to him for once.

The door opened and Crump quietly peeked in. "Hey, Buddy," he whispered.

Nesbitt got up and walked over to him. "What's going on?"

"Kaiba already took some of the others and left," Crump said. "I guess we should probably go too? Especially since we've got magic and all." He held up his ring.

Nesbitt frowned and looked back at Lector. "Is anyone planning to stay here?"

"Kaiba insisted Mokuba stay, of course," Crump said. "Marik stayed back to keep him company. Ishizu _might_ be here. . . . I know Rishid figured he needed to go."

Nesbitt slowly nodded. "Just as long as Lector's not here alone. He completely overtaxed his body as well as his mind. He has to rest."

"I know," Crump said. "I think Duke, David, and Serenity are staying back too. They had a pretty rough night."

Nesbitt still hesitated. "What if there's another attack here, though? Someone else with magic should stay, just in case. Otherwise, Lector will try to use his ring. . . ."

Crump smiled. "Yeah, that's a good point. You go ahead and stay then, Buddy. That'd be good for Lector on multiple counts."

Nesbitt relaxed at last. "I'd feel better staying."

"Oh, and tell Lector that the drug wore off on Marie and she's flippin' out about it," Crump said. "She called up Evangeline thinking maybe she put Francoise up to it."

Nesbitt scowled. "I'm sure Evangeline gave her an earful."

"You bet she did!" Crump chuckled. "She said a cruel trick like that was Marie's style, not hers . . . even if Marie deserved it."

Nesbitt sighed. Lector would probably only feel even wearier about that, sad that Evangeline had grown so bitter and sad that Marie was so suspicious.

Crump seemed to realize too. ". . . Their mom's still under Francoise's dad's spell, though," he said. "I guess we havta find him to get that broke."

"He'd better be on that boat," Nesbitt growled.

"Oh hey, while you're kicking around here today, you wanna watch my _Magic Knight Rayearth_ discs?" Crump offered.

Nesbitt went red. "What?!"

"I brought both seasons," Crump said. "I thought maybe Evangeline and Angelique would get a kick out of the show. And I know you like all the mecha battles in season two."

Nesbitt was still red. It was true, he had actually watched that old magical girl anime back in the day because of the mechas. But it wasn't something he admitted to, especially since when he had watched it he hadn't had any friends and all the friendship content of the series had made him scoff.

So strange that now he actually had friendships just like the girls in the show. . . .

". . . How do you know I like it?" he asked in an even smaller voice than the whispers they had been using.

"Aww, come on," Crump grinned. "I know what you like. . . . And I caught you watching an episode that time I came over to talk about the budget for the tech department."

". . . That was over twenty years ago," Nesbitt said in disbelief. He still remembered the mortification he had felt and how he had quickly fumbled for the remote to turn off the television and its paused picture.

"Some things a guy just doesn't forget," Crump said. "Well, anyway, if you want 'em, they're in my suitcase. Left 'em on top."

"Thanks. . . ." Nesbitt said slowly.

"I got _Sakura Wars_ too," Crump smirked.

". . . Those mechas are a little too old-fashioned for me," Nesbitt said.

"Steampunk's a guilty pleasure of yours, though, right?" Crump said.

". . . Yes," Nesbitt admitted.

"It's okay to admit you like things," Crump said. "Especially around us. Who cares if these series were technically made for girls? If it's good, anyone can like it!"

"Heh. Alright, you win," Nesbitt said, finally allowing a bit of a smirk of his own. "Yeah, I liked _Sakura Wars_ . . . even though I found the concept of powering the mechas with spirit energy to be completely preposterous."

"Funny thing is, that's kind of our life now," Crump sighed, sobering abruptly as he looked down at his ring.

Nesbitt couldn't deny that. His gaze drifted down to his ring as well.

"Well . . . I'd better get going." Crump patted him on the shoulder. "Take care."

Nesbitt nodded. "Stay safe."

Lector was stirring as Nesbitt came back in the room. "What's going on?" he mumbled.

"They're going to meet the boat," Nesbitt said. "Some are staying behind. . . . You're certainly going to," he gruffly added.

Lector sighed, passing a hand over his eyes and then just leaving it there. "I shouldn't. . . . I should help too. . . ."

"You'll help the most by getting better," Nesbitt insisted. He hesitated, then added, "Marie's back to normal from the drug. . . . Your mother is still under a spell."

Lector took his hand away and looked at Nesbitt. "Well, at least Marie is safe now. . . . That must be a horrible blow about her fiancé, though, unless she was only interested in him at all when she was drugged. . . ."

"I don't know about that," Nesbitt admitted.

Lector sighed again and closed his eyes. "Nesbitt . . . do you remember what happened when Noa first tried to 'delete' us?"

Nesbitt went stiff. "We ended up back in the real world as wandering spirits," he said guardedly.

"Before that. I mean the instant we disappeared from that room where Noa and poor Mokuba were." From Lector's voice, he was remembering all too well.

Nesbitt looked away. "I've tried to forget." A shudder rippled through his body. He had tried so very hard to forget . . . to think of it as a bad dream. . . . And apparently the others had felt likewise, since none of them had spoken of it either.

Lector raised a hand and reached out, weakly taking hold of Nesbitt's hand. Nesbitt jumped and turned back, looking at his friend in confusion and disbelief.

". . . You really want to talk about it?" Nesbitt said at last.

"I've been thinking about it a great deal," Lector confessed. "When I collapsed . . . and when I've been sleeping . . . I've been remembering."

"Then how could you look so peaceful?" Nesbitt snapped.

"What happened was horrible," Lector said. "But it did lead to all of us taking good hard looks at ourselves and what we'd become. . . . And how much we'd come to mean to each other. If Yami Marik hadn't put us under his spell while we were wandering spirits, I believe we would have tried to repent far sooner than we did. None of those horrors in the augmented reality game or in the Shadow Realm would have ever happened."

"But they did happen." Nesbitt sank onto the edge of the bed. "I guess knowing now that we were under a spell helps somewhat, and I'm grateful to know that even spelled, I didn't torch that warehouse. But . . . we still hurt you, even after what happened before all that . . ." A haunted look passed through his eyes.

"It's alright, Nesbitt," Lector insisted. "I finally healed from that time before we even learned that we were under a spell back then. And even though we were, we didn't truly understand the Shadow Realm and none of you intended on me being hurt. You felt betrayed, but despite your anger you still thought I'd be alright." He smiled. "That makes me feel even better than I already had. No spell could make you turn against me."

"I don't know if I'll ever be able to see it that way when I think of what could have happened," Nesbitt said brokenly. "But at the same time, I'm . . . I'm glad you didn't turn against us . . . against me. . . . I'm not sure I could have taken it . . . even if I deserved it. . . ."

"You didn't!" Lector insisted. "You could never deserve that!"

Nesbitt drew a shaking breath. ". . . After Noa tried to 'delete' us . . . what do you remember as having happened?" he asked in resignation.

"We were trapped in Noa's version of the KaibaCorp mansion," Lector said softly. "We thought we'd somehow ended up back in the real world, but we hadn't. And one by one, we all started to get killed off. We thought Gozaburo's vengeful spirit was after us. . . ."

"But it was Noa torturing us," Nesbitt spat. "He set the computer to automatically go through that simulation while he went off to duel Kaiba. He hated us so much because we were together. . . . Even though we didn't know that at the time. . . ."

_Gansley had been driven to a heart attack. . . . Crump had been speared. . . . Johnson had been shot. . . . And the rest of what had happened there. . . ._ Nesbitt trembled again.

Lector took pity and gave him a sad smile. He wouldn't make Nesbitt discuss it any more.

"At least none of us were really dead," he said.

"But then the virtual world blew up, with us still trapped. . . ." Nesbitt looked at Lector with new agony in his eyes. "I thought that was it for all of us. . . ."

"We were sent back to the real world and separated," Lector remembered, "and each of us thought the others were gone."

"And when I saw that blasted Orichalcos thing, I was sure it had claimed all of your souls," Nesbitt rasped. "It was too much after what else we'd come through. . . . It was too much. . . ." He shook his head.

"And so you did everything you could to block it all out," Lector said quietly. "Nesbitt, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought it up. . . . I was thinking how we were made to think each other was dead those times and then we were alright and how wonderful that was. . . ."

Nesbitt looked at him. "And this time you had to suffer seeing that evil spirit pretend to be me. . . ."

"But it wasn't," Lector replied, "and that is what matters the most to me."

Nesbitt gripped Lector's hand, an action Lector reciprocated. Warm, and alive. . . . He never could have forgiven himself in the past if Yami Marik had set them free from his spell and they had discovered Lector could not be brought back from the darkness of the Shadow Realm. Even though they hadn't been anywhere as close then, Nesbitt knew that his guilt and grief would have caused the darkness to take him next. And even last night . . . even though Nesbitt had hardly been at fault. . . . If Lector had died then, Nesbitt would have died too, emotionally if not physically. But he really didn't want to think about that anymore.

"So . . ." Nesbitt took a deep breath. ". . . We should get some breakfast. Do you want to watch _Magic Knight Rayearth_?"

Lector's eyebrows shot up. "What?!"

Nesbitt gave him a crooked smirk. "I watched it for the mechas."

xxxx

The Port of New Orleans was always busting and busy at any time of day. Seto was tense as he stood with his group and waited for the _Star_ to dock. There was no telling what might happen when they confronted the man who had been behind most of their misery on this trip. All the magic users were tense, ready and waiting for when they might have to act.

"It looks like it's going to be a cloudy day," Mai frowned.

"That's all we need, for it to rain on our parade," Téa sighed.

"Let's just hope it won't make the boat late," Mai said.

When Gansley arrived with his group, the others were staring towards the port as a large vessel docked.

"That's not a boat," Johnson said. "That's practically the size of a cruise ship!"

"And it's actually a cargo ship," Gansley mused.

"Well, I guess that makes sense if the guy's a merchant," Crump said. "What's he buy and sell anyway?"

"The information I found was vague on that point," Seto deadpanned. "Lector is staying home, I assume."

"Yeah, and I left Nesbitt with him," Crump said. "Somebody back there needs to be able to use magic if they have to!"

Seto nodded in approval. The safer Mokuba was, the better.

"They're getting off now," Bakura announced.

Everyone snapped to attention as the people began to disembark. But it was soon obvious that there was a problem.

"Where's the guy?!" Crump exclaimed. "There's nobody getting off who looks anything like any of these people!"

Yami Bakura growled. "Perhaps he's still onboard with his merchandise. Ring, where is Francoise Dove's father?"

The Infinity Ring glowed, the beam spinning around in the air before pointing at the ship.

"So that is where he is," Seto said. "I'll get them to let us onboard to find him."

"But what if that alerts him about us?" Yugi worried.

Seto narrowed his eyes. "It's not like we can sneak onboard. There's no way to get on without being seen."

"Unless somebody's got invisible magic or something?" Joey said.

Everyone shook their heads.

"Figures," Joey scowled.

Seto strode past everyone disembarking as he determinedly headed for the bosun, who was standing by and observing.

". . . Hey, I just realized something," Joey said. "Do we even know this guy's name?!"

Tristan facepalmed. "We'd better hope Kaiba does."

After a moment of speaking with the bosun, Seto turned to look down at the group and nodded.

"Alright! He must be there!" Yugi exclaimed. "Let's go!"

The group quickly went up the ramp and over to Seto. "So what's the deal?" Joey asked.

"He's in the cargo hold, preparing to get his merchandise out," Seto said. "Apparently what he distributes are voodoo trinkets for the tourists." He grimaced.

"Man, I have had enough voodoo for a lifetime," Tristan scowled.

"Me too," Téa shivered.

"Well, can we go down to him or what?" Mai asked.

"Normally that wouldn't be allowed, but I used my influence to get us in," Seto said. He nodded to where the bosun was walking towards the stairs leading below deck.

"Leave it to Kaiba to use the company clout to get us in anywhere," Tristan remarked.

"It definitely comes in handy," Mai said.

Atem stayed tense and alert as they went down the stairs. The closer they drew to the cargo hold, the more ominous it felt. And when the bosun actually faded into thin air, there could no longer be any doubt about the danger.

"What the heck?!" Joey screeched. "Where'd he go?!"

"It's a trap," Yami Bakura snarled.

"How right you are," boomed an all-too-familiar voice from the shadows up ahead.

"Dr. Raven?!" Angelique went sheet-white. "No, that's not possible. . . . You wouldn't work with this man! You were always archenemies!"

"Necessity prompts unusual things sometimes," Dr. Raven replied. "But you're right, my dear. I'm not working with him."

The overhead lights switched on, revealing Dr. Raven standing in the doorway of the cargo hold. The man from Francoise's picture was laying on the floor near him, while Lector's father was bound and gagged on a stack of crates.

"Oh my gosh!" Téa gasped.

"You creep! Are they dead?!" Joey demanded.

Evangeline clenched a fist. "Father," she said quietly. Bitterness still laced her voice, but there was also a touch of sadness.

"No, they're not dead," Dr. Raven said. "I still have use for them right now, or at least him." He indicated Mr. Leichter. "And I appreciated how everything was set in motion by my rival here. He wore my enemy's son down a great deal yesterday."

"Do you know about everything he did?" Gansley's voice had gained a dangerous edge.

"Yeah! Lector is sick now, thanks to him!" Crump spat. "And you too! Kidnapping his dad didn't help any; Lector still cares about the crumb in spite of what he did!"

"If you try to do anything else to Lector, I won't hold back on what I do to you," Gansley threatened.

"Then you're more of a daddy to him than his real one," Dr. Raven sneered. He walked over and jerked Mr. Leichter's head up by the hair. "What do you think of that?!"

Mr. Leichter's eyes widened in pain, but he didn't so much as make a muffled cry behind the gag. Instead he lowered his gaze and looked saddened and regretful.

"Let's get down to business," Yami Bakura growled. "What is it you want?"

"What I've always wanted," Dr. Raven said. "Vengeance on the Leichter family!"

"And this guy only wanted to marry into the family?" Téa looked to the unconscious man on the floor.

"We actually thought maybe he had some kind of connection with you, since you both have bird names," Tristan remarked.

"You're not wrong," Dr. Raven said. "We started out working together in the entertainment circuit but eventually went our separate ways. But that's not important."

"And yet he kept the bird stage name?" Atem mused.

"He saw no reason to change it," Dr. Raven shrugged. "It certainly wasn't out of any loyalty to me."

"Well, you and your 'friend' have had plenty of time to wreak havoc on the whole family by now," Evangeline spat. "Are you saying you're still not done?!"

"I won't be done until you're all dead," Dr. Raven sneered.

"Are you serious?!" Joey exclaimed. "You're really that mad about stuff that happened two hundred years ago or whenever this stupid feud started?!"

"Not really," Dr. Raven said. "I just want them all dead for personally humiliating me. And I want all the rest of you dead for that same reason."

"That's not going to happen," Atem vowed. "We'll defeat you right here, right now!"

Dr. Raven's lips parted in an amused and cruel sneer. "A battle of magic users, is it? That's just fine. Especially since I have two hostages and I highly doubt you're going to let anything happen to either of them, even Lector's dear daddy."

"You're going to use his life as bait?!" Téa cried.

"Well, why not?" Dr. Raven sneered. "It seems perfect to me. What do you think, Mr. Leichter?"

Mr. Leichter just glowered at him. Of course, with the gag and the ropes, there wasn't much else he could do.

"We'll just see about that!" Yami Bakura snarled. He blasted with the Infinity Ring. The Big Three followed suit. When Dr. Raven countered with a blast of his own, Atem shielded them with the Infinity Puzzle.

"If only you could send him to the Shadow Realm or Mind-Crush him," Bakura fretted. "He'll no doubt protect himself if you try!"

"That doesn't mean I won't try," Yami Bakura growled. The Ring glowed, but at the last moment Dr. Raven shoved Mr. Leichter into the path of the beam. The man's eyes widened in pain and a silent scream choked in his throat. Then he went limp, his eyes blank.

"Bakura!" Atem exclaimed.

Yami Bakura took a step back. "That was an accident! The Ring can't punish me for an honest mistake!" Although he couldn't deny he felt Mr. Leichter deserved that fate as well, after all he had done.

Bakura's eyes filled with fear. "What if it does?! I'm the one who foolishly suggested you try, Yami!"

"Hush. I was going to do it anyway," Yami Bakura retorted.

Evangeline frowned. "So . . . what happened to him anyway?" she said slowly.

"His soul is now in the Shadow Realm," Yami Bakura growled. "I suppose I'll have to get him back. . . ."

Dr. Raven burst out laughing. "Every time you try to attack me, someone else will suffer in my place. And next time, it will be someone you care about much more!" With that, he suddenly vanished in front of their eyes.

"What the heck?! Where'd he go?!" Joey yelped.

"Who knows," Atem snarled. "But he'll be back." He looked to Yami Bakura. "For now, you had better correct what went wrong here."

"I said I would, didn't I?" Yami Bakura retorted.

The Infinity Ring glowed and Mr. Leichter's body jerked. His eyes took on life again and he shook, terrified from what he had seen in the Shadow Realm.

Yami Bakura grunted. "I could say Sorry, only I'm not."

Atem sighed, heavily. "I'd better call the prison and let them know we have one of the missing prisoners."

Evangeline set her jaw and walked over to her father. Though she didn't dare untie him, she did remove the gag. "Are you alright, Father?" she asked, her tone clipped.

"W-What . . . on Earth happened?!" Mr. Leichter sputtered.

"I don't really know," Evangeline said honestly. "Some sort of magic."

Téa slowly went over to Mr. Dove and knelt down by him. "Hello?" she called. "Are you okay?"

Mr. Dove started. "Raven," he rasped.

"He's gone now," Téa said.

Mr. Leichter groaned. "He mustn't find it. . . ."

Yami Bakura jerked. "Find what?!"

"He's after the family's . . . coat of arms," Mr. Leichter rasped. "If he gets it, he'll use it in a spell to rain destruction on the entire family!"

Several gasps went up, as well as a "What the heck?!" from Crump. Evangeline, however, still looked skeptical. "I thought you didn't believe in that sort of thing, Father."

"I didn't want you or any of the others to get involved with magic," Mr. Leichter said. "It's been a bane on us all. But nevermind that! I hid the coat of arms . . . long ago. . . . It's in Adele's old house . . . the one she's no longer living in. . . ."

"We'll find it," Evangeline promised. "Dr. Raven won't have any chance to go through with his sickening plans! Enough has been done to this family already . . . a lot of it thanks to you, Father."

Mr. Leichter looked away. "I know. . . ."

"And how did Dr. Raven get away with you anyway?" Evangeline asked. "If he was able to do it all along, he surely would have done it sooner!"

"I don't know how he did it," Mr. Leichter said. "He didn't tell me."

Yugi looked overwhelmed. "Oh wow. . . . Do you know where this house is, Evangeline?"

"Yes, I know," Evangeline said slowly. "It's a real piece of work. After we get these two taken care of, we'll have to go there."

Yami Bakura glowered at Mr. Dove. "Are you going to release everyone from the spell you put them under?" He came closer, his Infinity Ring glowing. "If you do not, I won't bring your son back from the Shadow Realm any time soon."

"What?" Mr. Dove squinted up at him. "You put him somewhere?!"

"That's right, because he'd been a very naughty boy," Yami Bakura sneered. "I could also send you there to join him. But I'd rather not because we need you to break the spell."

". . . I'll do it," Mr. Dove said in resignation. "Everything's shot now anyway."

Atem hung up with the prison, his eyes flickering in concern. "Let's just hope it won't take us long to have these people taken back to prison. We must find what Dr. Raven wants before he does!"

"And we'll havta let Lector and Nesbitt know what's up," Crump said. "They'll probably wanna come along, too. . . ."

"Well, Lector most certainly shouldn't," Gansley grunted.

"Yes, but try convincing him of that," Johnson said as Crump dialed.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter Fourteen**

Lector had been able to spend a relaxing morning, much to Nesbitt's relief. They had shared breakfast with the others still at the house and had even watched a bit of Crump's first _Magic Knight Rayearth_ DVD set. Serenity had joined them for that and decided she liked the show so much she wanted to see it all when things were peaceful again.

Lector had mixed feelings as he took Crump's call when it came. The tale of everything that had happened was horrifying. But he was relieved that his father had been recovered and that he wasn't still with Dr. Raven . . . or in the Shadow Realm. Now, however, there was this new problem.

"You're going out to Adele's old house?!" he exclaimed.

"Yeah," Crump said. "We've gotta go get your family's coat of arms thing before Raven figures out it's there. We're just waiting for people from the prison to come pick up your dad and for the police to arrest this Dove guy."

"Can the Dove guy even be charged with anything?" Nesbitt grunted. "It's not like he can be arrested for putting people under a spell."

"If he had any involvement with his son drugging Marie, he could be arrested for that," Johnson said, leaning into Crump's phone as Nesbitt was doing with Lector's.

"Well, in any case, I need to be with you when you go to Adele's house," Lector said. "Please don't protest. I know things about that place that might help you."

"Can't you just tell us on the phone?!" Crump exclaimed.

"I'm afraid not," Lector said. "I'll be alright, Crump. I've had a good rest and I've been able to relax here for a while." He smiled at Nesbitt, who was giving him a glare. "We'll leave right away and meet you at the port."

Finally Crump exhaled. "You're really sure you havta be there?"

"I'm sure," Lector insisted.

". . . Okay then. But you'll havta take it easy as much as you can!" Crump insisted.

"I promise," Lector said.

Nesbitt was still scowling as Lector hung up. "What's the deal?" he demanded. "Why do you know more about the place than Adele?"

"Adele still needs to stay with Mother and Marie," Lector said. "Dove said he'd release everyone from the spell, but I don't think he has yet." He sighed. "As for knowing more than Adele, I don't, really. But I don't want her going back there anyway. There are too many bad memories."

Nesbitt grunted. "You're too protective of them, after everything."

"I still love them, Nesbitt," Lector said sadly. "Anyway, Adele seemed to want to reconcile."

"Forgive me for not trusting her right away," Nesbitt shot back. He scowled again when Lector flinched. ". . . I'm just worried about you getting hurt again, but then I'm the one to hurt you. As always."

"No, Nesbitt." Lector reached out, gripping Nesbitt's shoulder. "I'm grateful you're worried. And you're right; I don't know that I trust Adele that much either. I've extended some trust, but I can't forget that she was very hurtful like most of the rest of the family was. It will take a long time before we can really start to be close again. Although I do hope that day will come."

"But meanwhile, you're determined to go out to the house," Nesbitt frowned.

"It's either that or I stay with Mother while Adele goes out to the house," Lector pointed out.

Nesbitt considered that. ". . . Going to the house would probably be less stressful and strenuous than the other."

Lector smiled, triumphant. "I'm glad you're starting to see it my way."

Mokuba wandered into the room. "Can I go too?" he asked.

Marik was right behind him. "If it's not dangerous, perhaps we could," he mused, laying his hands on Mokuba's shoulders.

"You'd have to ask your brother," Lector insisted. "There are some steep patches. . . . It's a strange place. But I don't think it would actually be dangerous . . . unless Dr. Raven gets there first."

Mokuba pulled out his phone. "I'll call Seto and ask."

xxxx

Seto wasn't pleased at first, but finally consented that Mokuba could come. So the group that had stayed behind at the house emerged, with Nesbitt driving them to the port. From there, some members of the groups switched places and Lector and Evangeline directed the others to a less well-traveled part of the city. All the homes they passed looked either abandoned or falling apart or both.

"Why the heck was Adele living here?!" Crump exclaimed. "I mean, she had money!"

"Her husband lived here," Lector said. His voice darkened.

"Well, why the heck was _he_ living here then?!" Crump persisted.

"He was a deadbeat," Lector said.

"She still doesn't live in the best digs in town, but anything would be better than these slums!" Crump declared.

"Don't be fooled by outward appearances." Lector leaned forward. "Stop here."

Crump pulled up in front of a bizarre yard filled with dead and twisted trees on either side. In the center was a small hill covered in flowers, sloping upward to where other gnarled tree branches were falling forward over the grass. So far the house itself wasn't even visible.

"What the heck?!" Crump burst out.

"This is a complete dump, except for the flowers," Nesbitt declared.

"The flowers are so pretty, they're totally out of place," Mokuba said as he pressed himself against the glass.

"Adele fell in love with the house because of the flowers," Lector said. He opened the door and slowly got out. He wobbled slightly but caught himself on the door.

Nesbitt was instantly at his side. "You shouldn't have come," he growled.

"I'll be alright," Lector insisted.

"Lean on me," Nesbitt ordered. "I'll make sure you don't fall over."

Lector didn't protest. He knew he was weakened after yesterday. And really, the last several years had been almost non-stop stressful. He was surprised he hadn't worked himself into a nervous collapse before now.

Everyone from the different vehicles converged on the location and began walking up the hill, all the while trying to avoid tripping over or becoming entangled in the tree roots and branches all over the grass. As they climbed, an old wooden house began to come into view. The roof looked ready to cave in, while shutters hung half-off their windows and the porch was drastically sagging. Just the movement of everyone drawing close to it caused the front door to creak open.

"Gah! It's a ghost!" Joey screamed.

"Try 'It's air pressure,' Wheeler," Seto grunted.

"Hey, in this place it's hard to tell!" Joey snapped.

No one could really deny that.

"_Is_ this place haunted?" Téa nervously asked.

"Maybe," Evangeline said. "There's definitely something weird going on in there."

"What?!" Joey wailed.

"You have to see it to believe it," Evangeline insisted.

"Can we even go up the stairs without them breaking through?" Tristan frowned.

"Yes," Evangeline said. "Just be careful of the middle."

Everyone immediately walked to the sides. Lector and Nesbitt took the lead, and as Lector reached the porch he pushed the front door open farther. A dilapidated entryway greeted them, with ragged carpet and a pink tapestry that was barely hanging on to the ceiling. Holes had been punched through the walls, and whether it was deliberate or accidental was impossible to say.

"Oh yeah, this place is a real looker, alright," Crump grunted.

"Wait for it," Evangeline said.

As each person entered the house, the interior shifted before their eyes. Suddenly the carpet was bright and cheerful, the tapestry new, and all the walls and furniture whole and inviting.

"_What the heck?!"_ Crump boomed.

The door slammed shut behind them and they jumped.

"I sure see what you mean," Yugi exclaimed. "Just explaining this wouldn't have been good enough. It's unbelievable!"

"It's crazy!" Mokuba exclaimed.

"I know, right?" Evangeline shook her head.

"I certainly didn't believe it when I first saw it," Lector said.

"But so what's the deal?" Crump asked. "Was it like this when Adele lived here?"

"Yes, but this was its natural state," Evangeline said. "It didn't switch back and forth."

"After Adele moved, the house fell into disrepair," Lector said. "But anytime anyone came inside, it switched back to how it looked when she was here."

"You know, if I didn't know better, I'd say the house misses being lived in and maybe even misses her," Crump said. "But that's looney tunes talk."

"I'm seriously starting to wonder if anything is 'looney tunes talk' anymore," Gansley deadpanned, not entirely kidding.

"Yeah, just about everything we used to think couldn't happen is pretty commonplace by now," David remarked. "I kind of miss the days when it was all nonsense and fairytales."

"No kidding," Joey scowled. "Well, we'd better start looking for that coat of arms thing."

Lector sighed. "If we can just figure out where Father hid it. . . ."

Nesbitt grunted. "Well, you said you know things about this place," he said. "If some of that involves secret passages, maybe we should start there."

"That's true," Lector acknowledged. "Yes, Adele showed me several secret compartments. I can take you to them."

"I didn't know about secret places here," Evangeline said in surprise. "Why was Adele showing them to you, Démas?"

"It was mainly because of her husband," Lector said. His eyes flickered at the memories. "She grew to be afraid of him. She told me if I ever came over and couldn't find her or her sons, to check in these different spots. They might be hiding from him."

"That's heavy," Crump frowned. "He must've been a real piece of work."

"That's putting it mildly," Lector agreed.

Mokuba's eyes flickered. That reminded him all too much of Gozaburo. How he had longed to hide from that man so many times! Or maybe more precisely, to hide Seto from him. Gozaburo had mostly ignored Mokuba. If not for Lector, Mokuba would have been virtually alone during the times when Seto was being tutored. Gozaburo had never ignored Seto.

Seto laid a silent hand on Mokuba's shoulder. He could sense what his brother was thinking. It would be impossible not to be put in mind of Gozaburo. Seto had thought of him too.

Lector sighed and looked around the entryway. "Alright, I believe the first place was here in the front hall." He moved away from Nesbitt and slowly walked to a spot on the wall. It didn't look any different from any other place, but when he pushed lightly on the board in that section, it flipped open.

Eyes glittering in approval, Yami Bakura came over to peer into the space. "This is big enough for several people," he said. "But right now it's entirely empty. There certainly isn't any coat of arms in here."

Bakura's attention was elsewhere. "I say, aren't we supposed to be alone in here?" he said in concern. Oreo, looking over his shoulder, yowled.

Everyone started and looked to the dining area, half-hidden by another tapestry. A family was seated around the table, talking and sharing dinner.

Lector went stiff. "That's . . . Adele and her family," he gasped. "And Adele's best friend! But every one of those people is still alive; we can't be seeing their ghosts!"

Yami Bakura turned to look with a jerk. "Then we must be stuck in a time warp of the past. That would explain the house's odd behavior too."

"Do you think they'll see us?" Téa nervously asked.

"Considering they haven't so much as looked over even when the cat caterwauled, I doubt they're aware of our presence," Yami Bakura said.

Yugi blinked. "Well, I guess that makes sense. . . ."

"We're going to have to walk right by them to get to the rest of the house," Lector said, "so I most certainly hope they are unaware of us!"

Indeed, no one in the dining room so much as looked up as the group walked past. Lector couldn't refrain from a shiver. In all the times he had been here, he had never encountered this phenomenon. To see it all of a sudden was more than a little disturbing.

Evangeline shuddered too. "What a weird place. . . ."

"I wonder what would cause a time warp to form here, of all places," Angelique remarked.

"We'll probably never know," Yami Bakura grunted. "I'm starting to think there aren't any normal houses in New Orleans."

"All the weird stuff _is_ normal for here!" Joey whimpered.

Beyond the dining room, on the opposite side of the hall was a large square doorway opening into a back hall and what looked like the bedrooms. More tapestries hung from the ceiling, generally in the doorways of the rooms.

"Man, your sister has weird taste," Joey grumbled, brushing one of them out of the way to look into a bedroom.

"She thought it made the house look unique," Lector said. "She was certainly right about that."

"So what happens if we don't find the coat of arms here?" Crump worried. "Will that mean Raven already has it?"

"I hope not," Lector groaned. "If it's not in one of the secret places we'll have to branch out and search everywhere. It could be hidden in plain sight."

They roamed the main floor for a long time without finding anything in any of the secret places. Finally Lector led them down the stairs to the basement in resignation. But when they arrived at the bottom, the bizarre design of the house continued. Now, not only were there tapestries, but heavy quilts hung every little while to separate rooms. There were no normal walls or partitions for the rooms at all.

". . . Your sister really designed this?" Crump blinked in bewilderment.

"I . . . am honestly not sure," Lector said. "I never remember the basement looking like this when she lived here."

"Oh great!" Tristan scowled. "So what happened?"

"Let's stay calm and perhaps we can figure it out," Gansley said.

"We'll have to go to the outside walls for the secret passages we haven't checked yet," Lector said. "But when I see all this, I wonder if Father hid the coat of arms on a tapestry or quilt. . . ."

"It'd take forever to check them all!" Joey yelped.

"So it's not on a shield then?" Tristan asked.

"We don't have an actual shield, no," Lector said. "I don't recall that we ever did. We just had the design, and Father could have had that put on a tapestry or quilt." He sighed. "But it's possible there is a shield and that's what Father hid here. He could have destroyed the cloth version." He brushed aside several quilts, going deeper into the bizarre maze as he searched for the outside wall.

The others trailed after him.

"Wow, this place is so strange," Yugi exclaimed. "But it's kind of fascinating too."

"It really is," Serenity said. "All of these quilts and tapestries are beautiful. Each one looks handmade." She ran her hand over a teal-colored quilt. "And I just thought of something. Quilts have two parts and then the batting in the middle. What if your dad put the coat of arms into a quilt instead of on one, Mr. Lector?"

Lector stiffened. "He certainly could have! But that would mean we would have to open each one. . . ."

"Oh brother! We couldn't do that!" Crump exclaimed.

"It would be such a shame to do that too," Serenity said. "I wonder if he could have left a clue on the right one?"

"That's assuming he put it in one at all," Duke said. "Maybe he didn't."

"And where the heck is the wall?!" Joey yelled. "It's gotta be here, but the more quilts we move, the more there are!"

"It would be all too easy to become lost down here," Yami Bakura growled.

"And what if that's what's supposed to happen?" Atem said in concern. "If the house isn't supposed to look like this, what if this is Dr. Raven's doing? He could have beaten us here after all and decided to torture us."

"I wish that didn't sound as plausible as it does," Téa moaned.

"Perhaps we shouldn't all stay so closely together," Gansley said. "Maybe some of us should go back near the stairs in case we need to help the rest of you find your way back."

Seto turned to look behind them. "That's all well and fine, if you think _you_ can find your way back."

"Oh man, don't tell me we're already lost!" Joey cried. "It's a few quilts! We couldn't get lost with a few quilts!" He brushed several aside, certain he was going in the right direction. Instead, he was greeted by more. A scream of frustration tore from his lips.

"Calm down, Wheeler," Seto said in irritation. "We'll find the way back."

"Of course we will," Yugi smiled with an encouraging nod. "But first we have to try harder to find that coat of arms down here!"

That was easier said than done. Joey was right that the more quilts they moved, the more there were. It was an impossible labyrinth dragging them deeper and deeper into its embrace.

"For once I actually wish the Paradox Brothers were here," Atem frowned as they continued to search. "Labyrinths were their specialty. No doubt they could find the way out."

"Ring, show us where the wall is!" Yami Bakura commanded in frustration. But this time the Infinity Ring was silent.

Tristan threw his hands in the air. "Well, of course it wouldn't be that simple," he said in disgust.

"I suppose we have to be grateful the Ring has been working lately on more critical matters," Bakura said when Yami Bakura looked like he was silently fuming. "We can't expect every problem we have to be solved with it."

"No, of course not," Tristan sighed. "But that doesn't make it any less frustrating."

"It most certainly doesn't," Lector said. "By now I confess I don't know what to do either. We haven't been able to make it back to the stairs. None of these tapestries or quilts are any help."

"And you've surely been up for far too long," Gansley grunted. "You need to rest! But I don't even see a place to do so except the floor."

"After collapsing there last night, I would rather not rest on the floor," Lector said wearily.

Mokuba brushed another quilt aside and yelped.

"Mokuba?!" Seto looked over with a jerk. "What is it?!"

Mokuba was staring at a twisted tree root rising out of the floor. "I don't know!" he exclaimed. "It looks like one of the trees from outside is growing in here too!"

Evangeline gaped. "What on Earth . . . ! It broke right through the wood floor!"

"Boy, I'll bet that messes up the plumbing something awful," Crump commented.

"Does this happen a lot around here?" Téa asked.

"It shouldn't be happening at all," Evangeline retorted. "Not if there's a proper foundation and floor!"

"And I thought Adele had both," Lector frowned.

Joey tripped over another root. "Well, guess what?! Here's another one!"

Crump flinched. "Hey, you don't think it's like _The Lord of the Rings_ when that tree tries to attack Merry and Pippin and starts pulling them inside it?!"

"I hope and pray not!" Lector retorted.

The house gave an eerie groan under their feet and the visible roots seemed to move. The floor rocked, and everyone started to pitch forward and backward. They grabbed at the quilts and each other to keep from falling.

"Man, I am never coming to New Orleans again! I swear!" Joey yelled.

"Not even to visit our friends?" Serenity countered. But she looked nervous too.

"How about they visit us for a change?!" Joey shot back.

"I think that's a great idea," Angelique exclaimed. "I'd love to see Domino City!"

"So would I," Evangeline said. "But right now, unfortunately, we have to figure this current problem out!"

The floor finally stopped rumbling and the roots lay still again. Slowly everyone began to let go of their deathgrips on the quilts or their friends and straightened.

"I would really recommend leaving the basement, only we can't seem to do that either," Yami Bakura said in disgust.

"And how can we leave the house without the coat of arms?" Evangeline worried.

"You know, I seriously doubt Dr. Raven could find it here any better than we can," Crump said. "And what the heck are we supposed to do with it if we find it, anyway? Are we gonna destroy it so he can't get it?!"

"I don't know," Lector realized. "I would hate to do that, especially since it may very well be the only copy in existence."

Without warning the sound of a door creaked open somewhere in the expansive area. Everyone froze. Could that be Dr. Raven now, having tracked the coat of arms here? Should they stay quiet and lay in wait to ambush him?

"Just what is wrong with you children?!" came Adele's frustrated and sorrowful voice. "You can't even behave at the dinner table! I don't know why you hate on everyone you come in contact with! Celine is my friend. You treat her with respect! Just go downstairs and think about that for a while."

"Aww, Mom," a child's voice whined back.

"Go. Now!" Adele ordered.

Footsteps clattered down the stairs. Hoping to find the stairs, the group tried to quietly inch towards the sound without disturbing the quilts.

"So this is another scene from the past," Joey realized. "You think they still won't see us?"

"We can hope," Lector said. His eyes flickered. He had absolutely no desire to encounter Adele's two older children again, past or not.

A crunch and a yelp. "Oh no! Not again! Stupid stair. . . ."

"That's right," Lector gasped. "One of the stairs was always breaking through. Finally Father had it mended properly. I'd completely forgotten about that!"

"Do you think the coat of arms could be inside the stair?" Téa hopefully asked.

"Let's find out." At last Lector parted the remaining quilts and they were back at the stairs. He shined his Smartphone over them, soon picking out the one that looked newer than the rest.

"So . . . anybody brought a crowbar?" Joey frowned.

Nesbitt actually produced one. "I thought we might need it when we were going on a treasure hunt."

Lector smiled. "I should have known. You do the honors, my friend." He stepped away from the stairs and Nesbitt came forward, using the crowbar to pry off the top of the one in question.

"You should look in it," Nesbitt said.

Lector did, and he soon pulled out an old and folded piece of cloth. "This is it!" he exclaimed.

"Man, it looks ready to disintegrate if you breathe on it," Joey said. "Although maybe that's what we want. Then Raven can't get it!"

Lector held it as carefully as he could. "Let's get out of here before anything else bizarre happens."

Everyone was all too relieved to agree.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes: The wonderful ElfBean on DeviantArt illustrated the rescue scene at the end for me! I love it.**

**Chapter Fifteen**

After the outlandish experience in the house, the group wondered if they would really be able to leave without trouble. But they made their way back upstairs, past Adele and Celine in the dining room, and out the front door onto the porch. As soon as they were out, several dared to look behind them. Now the house had reverted back to its decrepit state.

"_Weird,"_ Tristan commented.

Joey moved as far away from the house as he could. ". . . So now what?" he asked, trying not to show how disturbed he was.

"We need to put this in a safe place," Lector said, looking down at the old cloth. "But I'm not exactly sure where that Dr. Raven wouldn't think to look."

"Yeah, I mean, how do we know what this guy can't break into?" Joey said.

"Let's take it back to the house and put it any old place," Yami Bakura grunted. "Perhaps a safe, if the house has one. Or we could put it in a tomb. I'll cast a sealing spell on it." He sneered. "And if anyone tries to break it unauthorized, they'll get a very nasty little surprise."

"Works for me," Crump said.

Atem watched Yami Bakura carefully as they started heading down the hill to the vehicles. "You've been getting awfully bold lately," he remarked. "I hope that won't backfire on you."

Yami Bakura looked to him. "It is strange, isn't it," he mused. "But the Infinity Ring seems to allow it. The more I've been working with it, the more I may be starting to understand it. I can do things, even unconventional things, in order to protect Bakura and others. Perhaps . . . I don't have to completely change who I am to please it."

"Just be careful," Atem said. "I'm sure that some things would be off-limits, even if your intentions were good."

"I'm sure as well," Yami Bakura grunted. "But we'll see. I doubt a sealing spell would be a problem."

"Yeah, but can you really do one?" Tristan wondered. "Your Ring acts so screwy."

"I believe I can manage this," Yami Bakura said.

It didn't take long to return to the mansion and decide on a place for the coat of arms. Evangeline felt it would be safest in one of the secret compartments in one of the tombs, so they picked the most difficult one to access and Yami Bakura cast his sealing spell over it.

Téa sighed, leaning on the wall with an elbow. "So now what?" she wondered. "I mean, where do we go from here?"

Lector looked up from his phone. "I've called Adele," he said. "Mother is finally out of the spell, as are the other people around the city."

"Well, that's good," Téa said.

"I would say our remaining objective, then, is to catch Dr. Raven," Gansley said.

"But how are we gonna do that?!" Crump frowned. "We don't know where he'll show up next! Unless . . ." He pondered the problem. "Unless he decides to go to his old shop after all. . . . Or unless maybe he wants the stuff that Dove guy was transporting?"

Téa sighed. "I guess the police won't be able to hold that guy on anything when we couldn't prove he knew about Marie being drugged. . . ."

"No, they won't," Johnson said. "In fact, he's probably been released by now."

"And then he'd go right back to the ship to get his stuff!" Joey realized.

"Where he might clash with Dr. Raven again," Atem groaned.

"Then it looks like we've gotta go back there too," Crump said.

"And this time Raven won't have the chance to pull a stunt like last time," Yami Bakura growled.

Atem shot him a Look. "You're going to make sure he goes to the Shadow Realm, aren't you?"

"You surely can't deny that he deserves it," Yami Bakura insisted. "Prison obviously won't hold him."

"The Shadow Realm doesn't have the best track record of doing that either," Joey said.

"Hey, I just remembered something," Nesbitt exclaimed. "I was wondering last night if Darcy is still in a coma. What if she came out of it just as bitter and hateful and is working with Dr. Raven to hurt Lector and the rest of his family?!"

Lector flinched. "I should have thought of that myself," he said in chagrin. "Yes, I'm afraid that if the Mind Crush didn't help her to want to change, she might very well do something like that."

Evangeline's eyes flashed. "I'll call her aunt and uncle right now and find out!" She pulled out her phone.

"You'd think if she woke up that way that someone would have called Lector to warn him," Tristan remarked. "All of her family is nicer than she is."

"What if she'd try to fool them into thinking she'd changed if she hadn't?!" Crump exclaimed.

"Then one of the first things she would do would be to come to me and beg my forgiveness," Lector said. "I saw her put on her innocent act many times, but after I caught a glimpse of her true self she could never fool me with that again."

"Good for you," Nesbitt grunted.

Evangeline reached Darcy's aunt and shared a brief conversation before she hung up, her tan skin turning white.

"Nesbitt was right, wasn't he?" Seto frowned.

"She did wake up," Evangeline said weakly. "And she claimed she did feel bad about what she'd done and she'd tell Démas as soon as he came back here again. But she hasn't been around at all."

"Not to mention, how would she even know when he'd be coming back?" Gansley realized.

"So she must have been lying." Lector clenched a fist.

"Would Dr. Raven even work with her, though?" Yugi suddenly wondered. "He seems like he likes to be in charge, but she seems the same way."

"Well, that's a recipe for disaster," Duke remarked, twirling a piece of hair.

"If they both hated me enough, they'd probably try to do it," Lector said, his eyes flickering with discomfort. It would be one thing if someone wanted to hate him for the things he'd actually done wrong. But it seemed like so many hated him for mostly or completely imagined ills.

"Oh Démas . . ." Evangeline went to him and hugged him close. "This is the last thing you needed right now. . . ."

Nesbitt growled. "That's why I didn't mention it last night," he said. "But then I remembered again and I figured he should know. . . ."

"I should," Lector said, drawing his arms around his sister. "I'll be alright, Nesbitt. I won't collapse again."

Nesbitt's eyes flickered. He didn't look as sure of that.

Gansley was also concerned. "So we'll have to be on guard for the possibility that both of them will assault us when we go to the ship," he said.

"And that's all we can do," Atem said. "We'd better hurry and go."

"I guess there's no point in asking if you'll stay behind," Nesbitt said to Lector.

"Not really," Lector said. "And if you're right, Nesbitt, I'd probably be safer staying with all of you anyway. Darcy would love to get me where no one could defend against her black magic. I am most likely still too weakened to use my ring. And it probably wouldn't work to use it to defend myself anyway."

"Oh, that's true," Evangeline realized. "Stupid stipulations . . . !"

"Alright then, so we're all together," Mai said. "Let's see what we can come up with."

xxxx

All was quiet at _The Star of New Orleans_ when the group arrived back. That was definitely enough to send off alarm bells in their minds, and as they climbed the ramp leading onboard, they all stayed alert for any sign of Dr. Raven, Mr. Dove, or Darcy Broussard.

"They might be in the cargo hold," Johnson suggested.

Gansley nodded. "We'll have to try there first."

It was only further disturbing when they found the cargo untouched and no one around to claim it.

"Man, I was sure that Dove guy would come back and get his stuff after the police set him free," Joey frowned, folding his arms.

"So was I," Atem said. He went to the nearest crate and studied it. "I wonder if the contents are really just trinkets for the tourists and nothing dangerous and genuinely magical."

"The only way to find out is to look in them," Crump said. "Although I guess even then we might not be able to identify anything . . . especially if it's not in the book. . . ."

Téa sighed. "So what now?" she wondered, shoving her hands in her shorts pockets while leaning back against the wall.

"Perhaps we should spread out and search the ship," Atem said. "If none of our enemies come to it, I'm not sure what to do next outside of returning to Raven's shop. And I would rather not do it unless absolutely necessary."

"I wholeheartedly agree," David said.

"Okay, so we'll search," Crump said. "But nobody should go alone!"

"We'll divide into several groups, and there will be at least one magic user in each group," Atem agreed.

"But there'll need to be two in whichever group Démas is in," Evangeline was quick to point out.

"I'll go with Lector's group," Nesbitt said.

Groups were quickly decided on and they spread out, promising to keep in touch via their phones. The ship was huge, and it might be fatal if they lost contact. Most were certain that someone would be coming, if no one was there yet. If nothing was discovered within thirty minutes, they would all meet back on the deck.

". . . I never realized how creepy a huge ship could be when no one's on it," Téa moaned as her group wandered down a hall.

"It's sure creepy, alright," Mokuba agreed with a shiver. "But it's even creepier thinking about all the jerks who could be hiding in the shadows trying to get us."

Marik ran his hand over the wall. "This is high quality craftsmanship. It's a shame the ship is being used by criminals."

"Leave it to you to think about that," Seto grunted.

Marik shrugged. "Ships are one of my passions."

"Well, there's sure no one down here," Téa sighed. "I wonder if anyone else is having any better luck." She took out her phone and looked at it. "No news yet. . . ."

Mokuba scowled. "I wanna be glad if no one's coming out, but if we don't find them here, we know we'll be seeing them some other time. I'd rather get it over with."

"I agree with you, Mokuba," Seto said. "But it remains to be seen if that will happen."

It certainly seemed that it would not. In every area of the ship, each group found absolutely no trace of anyone still onboard. But the more they looked and found it so completely empty, the more eerie it was.

"Shouldn't there always be a skeleton crew around?" Johnson wondered, pushing up his glasses as his group left the boiler room. As with every other section, it was vacant.

"You'd think so," Tristan frowned. "Nesbitt would know."

"Well, it's almost been thirty minutes," Joey said nervously. "We should get heading back up."

"I almost wonder if this entire ship is a trap," Johnson said. "Maybe the crew was bribed to leave. Or worse, maybe something . . . magical happened to them. . . ."

"I wouldn't be surprised either way," Tristan said.

"But if it's a trap, shouldn't we have sprung it by now?" Joey said, casting a nervous glance over his shoulder.

"You'd think so," Johnson said.

"Let's just find the others and get off," Mai said. "This ship makes me uneasy."

Joey looked to her as they headed up the stairs. "I wasn't thinking," he said. "Does being here remind you of when you worked on the cruise ship, Mai?"

"A little bit," Mai said. "But a cruise ship is a lot different from a cargo ship. A cruise ship has all kinds of rooms and activities for the passengers' enjoyment. A cargo ship is just the bare bones of traveling."

"It's still better than Evangeline's house," Joey said. "Man, I wish she'd move, since the ghosts won't cooperate or leave. . . ."

"You know, there are people who claim to help ghosts cross over to the other side," Mai said. "Maybe Evangeline should try one of those."

Joey blinked at her. "You mean like in the show _Bleach_?"

Mai rolled her eyes. "Not exactly, since those people are basically Grim Reapers or astral-projected mortals and these people are alive and in their bodies."

Joey flushed. "Oh. Right."

Tristan looked around as they ascended to the next level. "It really is weird, where everyone went. Let's just hope none of our friends disappear like that."

"I'm hoping, I'm hoping!" Joey exclaimed.

When they reached the top deck, all the other groups were already gathering. From the matching grim and confused expressions, no one else had had any luck either. Joey noted with relief that Serenity was there.

Serenity turned and saw him too. "Joey!" she smiled.

Joey hurried over to her. "Everything okay, Sis?"

"Yeah. I just wish we could've found something," Serenity sighed.

"Found something?!" Crump suddenly bellowed. "Hey, that's Dr. Raven right over there, on the pier!"

Everyone looked to where he was pointing. He was right; the corrupted sorcerer was standing and raising his staff from the pier.

"Where'd he get the staff from?!" Joey yelped. "He didn't have that back!"

"Perhaps there was something similar in one of the crates that he took and we overlooked that crate was missing," Atem said. "Not that it really matters now."

Yami Bakura pushed past the others and stormed down the ramp. "We are going to have this out right now," he snarled, "and you're not going to use someone else as a shield this time!"

"Oh?" Dr. Raven looked at him in amusement. "And just what do you intend on doing?"

"What I was doing before," Yami Bakura replied. "Only this time it will work!"

Lector chased after Yami Bakura. He wished that he could also participate, when Dr. Raven had started all this madness by threatening his family. He knew he was still too weakened, but at least he hoped to watch. And judging from the man's actions, he had probably been about to cast a spell on the ship. Everyone should disembark.

The rest of the group had the same idea. They hurried down the ramp, leaving the ship behind. But it was as they set foot back on the pier that the horrible realization dawned.

"Where's Johnson?!" Gansley demanded.

The rest of the Big Five went stiff.

"He's not here?!" Crump gasped.

"He was right with us!" Joey exclaimed. "Following right . . . after us. . . ." He looked to Tristan and Mai, sickened. Had someone snatched Johnson while they had been oblivious?

Lector promptly turned back to the ship. "We have to get back on!"

Even as he spoke, the ramp was being abruptly pulled up. At the same moment, so was the anchor.

"It's leaving port!" Nesbitt said in disbelief. "Someone _was_ onboard!"

"That's right."

They looked up with a collective jerk at the familiar, cruel voice. Darcy Broussard had emerged onto the deck, sneering down at them. One arm was around a trembling Johnson's throat. The other was curled around his waist.

"Johnson!" Lector screamed.

Joey snarled. "Oh man. . . . This was my fault. I should've been watching more closely!"

"What's wrong with him?!" Tristan said in worried frustration. "Couldn't he easily break away from her?!"

"No." Gansley stared up at his friend, helplessly gripping his cane. "Whether deliberately or accidentally, by grabbing him like that she triggered in him the memory of what his former secretary did to him last autumn. He's frozen, locked in the past."

"Oh, it's deliberate," Darcy said. "I've researched everything that's happened to you and your precious friends, Démas. I know you're the closest to Mr. Nesbitt, so I might have preferred to target him again like last time. But I also know you love all of them and Mr. Johnson would be the easiest to capture and manipulate."

"That's horrible!" Evangeline screamed. "You're beyond cruel!"

"I know." Darcy reached up with the hand of the arm around Johnson's neck and stroked it. Johnson flinched, a choked cry escaping his lips.

Nesbitt shook his fist, swearing at her.

Lector ran to the end of the pier. "Darcy, I'm the one you're after!" he cried. "Come back and let him go!"

"Sorry, Démas," she sneered. "This ship's sailing, if you haven't already noticed. The only way to get him back is to come after me. Of course, by the time you either get a boat or swim over, I think his mind will be gone." She started to move her other hand over his shirt and down to his belt.

When she made the slightest indication that she might take hold of the buckle and undo it, Johnson came to life. He screamed, grabbing her wrists and shoving her violently away from him. In desperation he ran to the side of the boat, clearly planning to leap over the railing into the water.

"Johnson, don't do it!" Lector yelled in alarm. "You're too far out! I'll get a motorboat and come out to you! Don't . . ."

Before he could even finish his sentence, the ship burst into a raging cacophony, the red-orange flames engulfing and billowing around it. Johnson and Darcy disappeared from sight.

"The ship exploded!" Téa shrieked. "How?!"

Nesbitt wasn't waiting to hear the answer. He kicked off his shoes and dived into the water, desperately swimming towards the inferno.

Lector was frozen, staring at the blaze as the color of the flames reflected off his face. Johnson . . . Johnson was no doubt badly hurt now, if not dead. . . . Had Darcy blown up the ship, and herself, to kill Johnson? This was the second time in twenty-four hours that he had witnessed a loved one fatally hurt, but this time it wasn't like when he had seen a fake Nesbitt. This was the real Johnson. He was . . . he was . . .

Crump wrapped his strong arms around Lector from behind, holding his friend close and keeping his legs from giving out. "It's gonna be okay, Buddy," he soothed, even as he trembled from shock and fear himself. "Johnson's . . . he's gonna be fine. Nesbitt'll get him and bring him back and . . ." He trailed off, choking on his words. "Oh Buddy. . . ."

"Johnson's not fine," Lector shot back. "He's dead! Or horribly burned. . . ." He sobbed, gripping at Crump's arms. Indeed, his friend was the only reason he was still standing right now.

Yami Bakura whirled, turning to stare at Dr. Raven. The man was still holding a small black box in his hand, sneering in approval at his work.

"You did it!" he realized. "You set well-concealed explosives on the ship and blew it up by remote control!"

"That's right," Dr. Raven crowed. "I wanted to kill every one of you, but I got sidetracked when Dove showed up. I had to take care of him first, and then all of you were back on deck and running down to meet me. When I realized that woman had one of the Leichter boy's friends, I decided to blow up the ship anyway, even though I'd only be getting one of you."

"You monster!" Lector spat, fire suddenly burning in his eyes. He struggled to get out of Crump's arms. "You're going to pay for this!"

"Of course he is, but you're not going to be the one to do it!" Gansley snapped. "Lector, you barely have the strength to stand right now! You are not going to use your ring!"

But it was a futile command. Lector raised his arm and blasted at Dr. Raven with every bit of his strength. All the pain . . . all the heartache and misery. . . . His family's betrayal. . . . It was all Dr. Raven's fault. And he was still trying to hurt them all now! Lector had had more than enough. But instead of collapsing this time, he was going to fight back. He would have done it before if he'd had the chance . . . if he could have been there when Raven showed up before.

Dr. Raven gave a yell of surprise and pain as the blast hit him and he flew off his feet to the ground. Yami Bakura was immediately there, pressing him down with a foot on his stomach.

"Lector had every right to attack you," he said darkly, "and now you'll regret everything you've done to all of us. You won't make a fool out of me again! Penalty Game!" The Infinity Ring began to glow.

"Penalty Game?! What?!" Dr. Raven yelped.

The dark purple and blue clouds enveloped them both.

Bakura bit his lip. "I hope Yami will be alright. . . ."

"Of course he will be," Joey said. "Right now it's Johnson we've gotta worry about." He turned to look back at the mess. The ship was burning, pieces of it falling off into the water. Nesbitt was still swimming, dodging the falling debris all around him.

"He can't find him!" Téa cried.

Lector sank back against Crump, shaking. Using the ring had drained him, but the adrenaline rush had kept him from outright passing out even as he'd used up so much energy. Right now, the knowledge that Nesbitt still couldn't find Johnson was making him weaker than blasting Dr. Raven had done. "He's dead," he whispered hopelessly. "Johnson's dead. . . ." He shut his eyes tightly, tears slipping down his cheeks. "There's nothing of him to find. . . ."

"Hey, we don't know that!" Crump exclaimed. "Maybe he's under the water!"

The same thought had occurred to Nesbitt. He dived, desperately looking in every direction for his missing friend. He wanted to call out, but of course that was impossible here. He squinted through the water. If Johnson was drowning, finding him immediately was critical. But where . . . ?!

He surfaced again, gasping for breath. "Johnson!" he yelled.

A bedraggled Darcy appeared, choking and coughing. She grabbed onto a piece of floating wood, clutching it for dear life.

Nesbitt regarded her with hatred. "Where's Johnson?!" he snapped.

"How should I know?" she retorted. "If he wouldn't have pulled away from me I might have him now, but I don't!"

Nesbitt set his teeth. "You know very well why he pulled away from you," he spat, and swam on.

The entire ship was in pieces. Now he was finding more and more debris and it was getting harder to swim through it. Several of Dove's crates from the cargo hold floated by, but he ignored them.

One thing he didn't ignore was the sound of Joey, Tristan, and some of the other kids calling for Johnson as they swam over and joined in the search. He looked to them briefly, gratefully, before pushing on. Gansley hadn't been able to swim in years and Crump had to look after Lector, so none of them could help him, but Johnson was all of their friend. Nesbitt didn't have to do this alone.

"Johnson!" he shouted again.

At last he pushed aside some more floating crates and found the man lifelessly draped over a large scrap of ship. His glasses were gone and he was soaked through. He must have gone under and then emerged to grab the debris in desperation. Surely he was alive . . . he had to be alive. . . .

"Johnson!" Nesbitt growled, grasping his friend's shoulder and shaking him. Johnson gave one weak moan but otherwise didn't respond. That, however, was good enough for Nesbitt. He swam closer, taking hold of the limp form and pulling him away from the scrap metal. Then he was making his way back to the shore, supporting Johnson all the while.

"I've found him!" he called to anyone in hearing range. "He's alive!"

Even from that distance he could see Lector straighten, finally receiving strength enough to stand on his own again.

"He is?!" Joey exclaimed. "Alright!"

The others all swam back with them, but Nesbitt reached the shore first. Lector and Crump were right there, reaching out their arms to take Johnson from him and lift him up. Gansley was also standing by, having leaned his cane against the wooden pier to reach out as well.

It was Lector who took hold of Johnson first. He stumbled, not having expected the weight of the smaller man. But as Gansley supported him he was able to plant his feet and hold fast. "Johnson, I'm so sorry," he whispered. "You were hurt because of that woman . . . and Raven. . . . And none of it would have happened if they didn't both hate me and the Leichter family so much. . . ."

Johnson shuddered. "Lector. . . ." In his semi-conscious state he was more clingy than he ordinarily would be, and he threw his arms around his friend's neck.

Lector held him close. "I'm so sorry," he said again. "Are you badly hurt?"

"No," Johnson mumbled.

"I couldn't see any serious burns on him," Nesbitt said.

"We'll have to have him examined anyway," Gansley said in concern. "He could have swallowed some of the Mississippi River."

Johnson groaned at that thought. "Disgusting. . . ."

"I've already sent for my medics from the plane," Seto said.

Lector looked over with flashing eyes as Darcy made her way to the shore. "You . . . ! The Pharaoh hoped that the Mind Crush would help you want to turn your life around! Even that twisted Yami Bakura from another world came out of that state better than he'd been before! But you . . . ! It didn't change you at all!"

Darcy stumbled onto solid ground, glowering at her ex-fiancé. "Of course not," she spat. "I'm not that weak, to let my hatred and anger drain away. I used that time to plan my next move against you."

"Well, you still failed," Nesbitt snarled. "And now we're going to try another method." He grabbed her wrists. "You're going to prison. This time you committed crimes the law will recognize—abduction and sexual assault!"

At the same moment, the Shadow Realm bubble started to vanish. As everyone looked over, Yami Bakura stood coldly triumphant. Dr. Raven was nowhere to be seen.

"I won," he announced. "Prison couldn't hold that menace. Let's see if the Shadow Realm can."

"Yami!" Bakura ran over in relief. "You're alright!"

Oreo meowed, reaching out for him.

Yami Bakura gruffly patted her head. "Of course I'm alright," he said. "Although I'll admit that Lector blasting him weakened him even more. It wasn't as long of a fight as I'd hoped. What about Johnson?"

Bakura smiled. "He's alright as well," he said, looking back to where Lector and Crump were helping Johnson walk over to the van. "Thank goodness."

Everyone else thoroughly echoed that sentiment.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter Sixteen**

Lector sighed and leaned back as he finished bandaging Johnson's wounds. There was thankfully nothing serious, but he did have some mild cuts and a burn on one hand. The doctors had examined him back at the house but allowed Lector to take care of the injuries when Lector had pleaded to be allowed to.

Johnson sighed too. "Thank you," he said quietly.

Lector pulled a warm quilt up around him more. They were in the den, in front of a comforting fire. "How are you doing?" he asked.

Johnson shuddered. "I can't believe that woman did that to me. . . . But I hate that I fell apart about it in front of everyone. . . ." He shut his eyes tightly. His spare glasses were back in his room, but at the moment he didn't care that he couldn't see too clearly.

"Everyone understands why," Lector soothed.

"I shouldn't have even been grabbed," Johnson said, the bitterness seeping into his voice. "I was following Joseph and the others up the stairs and suddenly she grabbed me from behind and when I realized it was a woman I just froze. . . ." He trembled, covering his eyes with one hand.

"And she knew full well you would," Lector said. He couldn't keep the anger and outrage out of his voice.

"I thought I was over what happened, but I . . ." Johnson trailed off and shook his head.

"It's understandable you weren't over it," Lector said. "Something horrible like that . . . can't be recovered from so easily."

Johnson hesitated. "Darcy said she was working on her own. . . . I guess that means Raven didn't blow up the ship with her being his associate. . . ."

"I'm sure he would have done it even if she had been," Lector said. "The man has no heart."

"I can't voice an objection to that," Johnson said. He shivered, burrowing deeper under the quilt. He had insisted on showering before the examination, knowing that once everything was bandaged he didn't want to get it wet. Nesbitt was showering now, and though Johnson was feeling the cold, Lector had to wonder whether Nesbitt would, considering that Nesbitt was usually always hot.

"Do you want me to go get your glasses now?" Lector asked.

Johnson sighed. "Is there much point if I'm just going to lay here?"

"I suppose not." Lector laid a hand on Johnson's back. "Should I send for the others now?"

". . . I don't know how many I want to see me like this," Johnson said slowly.

Lector knew Johnson really meant he wasn't sure he wanted any of the females to see him like this, even though he knew he could trust them. "I just meant Gansley and Crump," he promised. "And Nesbitt, when he's ready."

"Then yes, I want to see them," Johnson said. "I don't feel much like talking, but . . . I'd just like them to be here. . . ."

Lector stood and went to the door. As he opened it, Gansley and Crump perked up from where they were sitting in chairs nearby.

"How is he?" Gansley asked.

"He wants you to come in now," Lector said.

Relieved, Gansley and Crump promptly followed Lector in and Crump shut the door behind them.

"Hey, how are you, Buddy?" Crump asked.

Johnson managed a weak smile. "Are we going to go home soon? Now both Lector and I would really like to recover at home. . . ."

Crump sat down near him and reached to lay a hand on his shoulder. "I hope we can go. Raven knocked out the Dove guy too, and he's in the hospital tonight. Hopefully we won't have to worry about him coming after the Leichter family, or the elemental rings, or whatever he wants. We were planning to go home tomorrow, and I'd absolutely say for us to go home today instead, but I wonder if you need to recover a little before making a big flight."

Johnson grimaced, but he couldn't deny the logic of that. "I guess maybe I do. . . ." He paused. "And it would be nice if we could leave on decent terms. . . . I know Evangeline would be sad if we left with nothing to show for this trip but disasters, even though we knew from the beginning that things would probably go wrong. . . ."

"She would be," Lector had to agree. "She feels very badly as it is. But she did encourage us to get home as soon as possible, for my and your sakes."

"I'll stick it out until tomorrow," Johnson said. He wearily closed his eyes.

". . . You know, I wonder if we really are safe from Mr. Dove," Lector frowned. "In all the commotion I'd forgotten that he wanted the elemental rings."

"There's just too much to keep track of," Crump complained. "But it really does burn me up that after everything he caused to happen to you yesterday, we havta just let him walk!"

Johnson opened his eyes. "If he's just in the hospital, he could get up and leave," he said in concern. "And he could come here. Things aren't really solved until we know he's not a threat anymore."

"Yami Bakura could send him to the Shadow Realm too," Gansley mused.

Lector sighed and ran his hands down his face. "We can't use that to solve every problem. And now we know not even the Mind Crush is a guarantee of anything."

"Nothing is a guarantee of everything," Gansley grunted.

"You know something else?" Crump said. "It seems like every time we get close to talking to that guy, Dr. Raven's knocked him out! That's twice in one day!"

"It's not as though he's likely to give us any real answers," Lector sighed.

"But somebody should try," Johnson said. "We need to know how he even knows about the elemental rings. I don't understand how that fits with his and his son's goal of marrying into the Leichter family."

"Raven probably told him," Gansley suggested. "Or he saw it in Raven's book. They worked together for a while, so it's not impossible."

"I suppose," Lector said skeptically. "It really would be better if we knew for sure. And now we can't ask Dr. Raven."

"We could send the Pharaoh," Johnson said. "Then if he finds the guy is still a threat, he can try the Mind Crush, at least."

Gansley nodded. "It's worth a try."

A knock at the door startled all of them. "Um, Lector?" Yugi called. "I hate to tell you this, but your mom's here with Marie and Adele. . . ."

Lector shut his eyes tightly. Then, inwardly groaning, he started for the door. "I suppose I'll have to see them. How is Mother behaving now that she's out of the spell?"

"She seems pretty sad and regretful," Yugi said. "How's Johnson?"

"Tired," Lector said as he opened the door.

"Oh Yugi, I'd like to speak with you for a moment," Gansley said.

Yugi blinked. "Uh . . . okay. Sure." He walked past Lector into the room.

Lector went out into the hall. Just as he did so, Nesbitt came down the stairs, dressed in a robe and drying at his hair with a towel.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"Mother is here with my other sisters," Lector sighed. "I'm going in now."

Nesbitt scowled. "I'll come with you. How's Johnson?"

"Tired," Lector said again. "Both physically and emotionally. What Darcy did drained him more than the explosion."

Nesbitt growled. "I knew it!"

"I must confess, I truly believe I hate that woman," Lector said as they walked. "And Dr. Raven. And Donna. . . ."

"I'm sure we all hate all of them," Nesbitt said. "I hate Dove too, and his no-good son. Everything he did to you . . . !"

"I don't feel very good about that myself," Lector said. "I suppose I've been focusing more on Dr. Raven because he's caused so many more things to happen and over a longer period of time, but Mr. Dove most certainly took advantage of all that Dr. Raven set in motion!" He clenched a fist.

Nesbitt growled. "If Raven didn't keep bonking him, I could punch him out myself."

Lector had to smile a bit at that. He knew Nesbitt would.

They reached the end of the hallway and stepped into the living room. Evangeline and Angelique were there, warily staring down the other Leichter family members. They were warily staring back. But as soon as Lector walked into the room, his mother perked up.

"Oh, there you are, Démas." She shifted. "I . . . I'm so sorry about everything I helped cause these last two days. . . ."

"Anything you did while under Mr. Dove's spell wasn't your fault, Mother," Lector said. "But the things you did before that happened absolutely were your fault. Adele told me how you tried to take over the family in Father's place and rule it with an iron fist, and how that hasn't been working out for you. I'm afraid I can't bring myself to feel too much sympathy for you, after the way you've treated not only me, but Evangeline and Angelique."

Evangeline nodded. "I'll never forget how you threatened to try to sully Angelique's name because of that mess that her family was involved in from the 1800s." She narrowed her eyes. "Unless you feel like changing your ways, Mother, you're really not welcome in this house."

"It's not your house, Evangeline," Marie said. "It belongs to the whole family."

"Not to mention all the ghosts," Evangeline said dryly. "Who might not even _be_ from this family. There's a good chance they're Germaines."

"Well, what's done is done," Mrs. Leichter said. "If they can't get over what may have happened centuries in the past, that's their poor luck." She sighed. "But Démas is right; I haven't been running this family well. Your father drove a stake into it . . . and I held it in place."

"No arguments from me," Nesbitt grunted.

Mrs. Leichter held out the children's drawings in her hand, the same ones Gansley had given her yesterday, in another lifetime. "You were so sweet and innocent when you drew these. . . . I haven't been a worthy mother to you for years, Démas, and I don't deserve to have these." She blinked back the tears forming in her eyes. "Give them back to your friends."

Lector hesitated. "Do you _want_ to have them, Mother?"

She averted her gaze. "I did . . . I do. . . . But . . ."

"Then I want you to keep them," Lector said. "If you still feel anything for me at all, I want that to be nurtured and encouraged. Things can never be the same as they were, but I would still like to have my biological family back."

"You say it that way because you've found a new family, haven't you?" Mrs. Leichter asked. "They love you so much better than we have, except for Evangeline. . . ."

"They've made mistakes too, but we've pushed through them," Lector said. "We're definitely stronger than the Leichter family has been."

Mrs. Leichter looked down. "I wish . . . we could have that same strength. . . ."

"To do that, you'll have to start behaving like a family," Lector said. "I feel like you're sincere, Mother, and you've taken the first steps. If you really mean it, you'll keep taking more of them."

"I . . . I want to," she stammered.

Marie looked away, uncomfortable. "I never wanted you to be hurt, Démas. . . . I loved Father so much and I sided with him, but . . . I know I shouldn't have. . . . Then when Mother kept acting the same way, I used that as an excuse to keep on with it. . . ."

Nesbitt wasn't impressed. "Your father even admitted he was wrong," he said. "If you really idolized him so much that all your actions were dictated by his actions, you would have changed your view to align with his once his changed. You didn't care about your brother!"

Marie didn't have anything to say to that.

". . . How are you feeling, Marie?" Lector asked. "I know it must be a hard blow about your fiancé."

Marie shrugged. "I'll live. I feel like punishing him with _vodun_, but I probably won't."

Adele heaved a sigh. "Well . . . I'm really sorry about all of this," she said. "But . . . I hope you're still planning to come over to see Gabriel, Démas. . . ."

Lector's expression softened. "Of course. I couldn't leave without seeing him again."

"And I promise I'll keep in touch," she continued. "I really am serious about trying to be a good sister to you again. . . ." She looked away, blinking as tears started to form. "I never should have stopped. . . ."

"I most certainly wish you hadn't," Lector said. "But I'm grateful you want to change at all."

"I hope we'll all try," Mrs. Leichter said. She looked decades older. "I'm so sorry, Démas. . . ."

"It means a great deal to me for you to say it, Mother," Lector said.

They quickly departed, Lector's pictures still in his mother's hand. Nesbitt came to stand alongside Lector as they watched the car drive away.

"I still don't trust any of them," Nesbitt proclaimed. "Especially Marie."

"She was very standoffish," Lector admitted. "She could be just smarting from what Mr. Dove did to her. I hope that's all it is. Otherwise . . ." His eyes flickered. "She might just hate me as much as Phillipe does."

Nesbitt growled. "Let's go back in to the others. You should spend some time with your real family."

Evangeline managed a smile. "Yes, you should, Démas. Mr. Johnson needs you, and I know you need him and all the others."

"I need you too," Lector told her. "I'd take you in with us, but poor Johnson isn't quite ready to see anyone besides the four of us yet. . . ."

"Oh, I understand," Evangeline promised. "After what happened to him last year, and Darcy triggering it today, it's more than enough reason for him to be leery of women for a while."

"He does want to see you more before we leave," Lector said. "He knows none of the women and girls here would ever hurt him. But for right now, he just wants us there."

"Go ahead," Evangeline encouraged. "Angelique and I'll make dinner."

Lector smiled. "Thank you."

Johnson seemed more perked up when Lector and Nesbitt went back in the room. "What happened?" he asked.

Lector sighed and sat down. "Mother seems to genuinely want to make amends, and Adele continues to want to. Marie . . . well, I'm not sure what's going through her mind. I don't really want to think about it right now."

Johnson sighed too, and sank deeper into the couch. "I don't know why, but what happened also seemed to trigger memories of our worst experiences through the years."

"That makes sense enough," Crump said. "Thinking about one bad thing can make you think about others."

"Well . . ." Johnson looked away. "I've thought about this before, but then I've put it out of my mind because I'm not sure of the answer . . . or if I even want to know the answer. We know now that Yami Marik put us all under a spell when Mr. Kaiba created his augmented reality game. And we know the spell seemed to still be in place when we were in the Shadow Realm. But . . . when did it break? And how?"

Nesbitt grunted. "Ironically, Lector and I were talking about the spell this morning."

"I believe the spell broke on me when Mokuba brought me back to the light," Lector said. "Maybe it wasn't just the darkness of the Shadow Realm he saved me from, but the darkness of that evil spell."

"I'm still not sure you were even under that spell, since you still tried to look after Mokuba even while you were supposedly in it," Johnson said.

"I was in it or things would have been different with me than they were," Lector sighed. "Nesbitt and I were also remembering what Noa did to us after we'd failed him too many times, and how we started to change during that experience. I believe we would have sought repentance much sooner had Yami Marik not attacked us and put us under his spell."

"I'm sure you're right," Gansley spoke. "Although I detest remembering that dark time. And I don't like remembering the spell either . . . but I am sure I know when it broke over the rest of us."

Nesbitt nodded. "When we saw Khu about to kill you," he said to Lector. "All of our grief and guilt and horror from the Shadow Realm mess burst to the surface and we couldn't bear to see you in trouble again. We were going to do what we should have done in the first place."

"Yeah. So . . . we did," Crump said.

"That's what I thought as well," Johnson said. "When Khu was about to attack you, it felt like something just broke and we knew our friend was in trouble and we had to save you, no matter what."

Lector smiled, touched. "Maybe you're right," he said, "but as I recall, we all started to make amends before that happened. So if you were still under Yami Marik's spell, I believe it had started to weaken. It couldn't hold you when you realized you didn't want things to be the way they were."

"Makes sense to me," Crump said.

"It's nice to think about anyway," Johnson said with a tired smile as he settled into the couch.

Nesbitt nodded. He wasn't sure what he believed, but he liked Lector's optimism. ". . . Do you want dinner when it's ready?" he asked Johnson.

"Yes," Johnson said. "But I don't know if I want it with everyone else. . . . I might rather just take it in here. But I wouldn't want to keep the rest of you from being with the others," he quickly added.

"It would be nice to be with them, of course," Gansley said. "But if you're staying back, we would rather stay with you."

"Oh, Gansley, did Yugi say he'd talk to Atem about visiting Mr. Dove?" Lector asked.

"He did," Gansley said. "He's sure Atem will agree. That _is_ an angle we can't forget about."

". . . You know, I suddenly thought about something else we forgot about," Johnson realized. "What about the Berserk Dragon?! I don't remember seeing it on the front lawn lately."

". . . Uh oh," Crump gulped. "You think it flew into town?"

"Everyone would have noticed," Lector said. "No, I don't think we have to worry. It probably went back to its dimension. At least, I hope so." But he frowned. There had been so much going on that he hadn't given that beast a second thought. Now that he had a moment, he really did have to wonder about it.

"I also wonder if we're ever going to learn the full story about the dragons' service to the Leichter family and why," Gansley said. "Those secrets must be locked up somewhere, probably in this house."

"I wish we could figure out what the deal is with the sealed-off room and that freaky ring we found," Crump said.

"Well . . . one mystery at a time, I suppose," Lector said. "We made a lot of progress, between finding that room and the ring and the spellbook in the attic and the diary in the alternate floor plan."

"And Angelique being able to go through the North wing," Crump said. "Coming to think about it, I wonder if she ever got to really go through all the stuff she found there."

Lector leaned back. "I wonder . . ."

Nesbitt looked to him. "What?"

"If the spirits feel alright about Angelique, I wonder if she could convince them to let Evangeline into the North wing as well," Lector said. "And maybe even me. . . ."

"Wouldn't hurt to try!" Crump said. "The worst they could do is say No. Or fill up the doorway with that 'You are not welcome' feeling."

"I really hope that the friendship between Evangeline and Angelique can mend the damage between the two families," Lector said.

Gansley gruffly smiled at him. "Perhaps it will."

xxxx

Angelique was also remembering that she hadn't quite got back to all the treasure trove she had found once the disasters had picked up the past night. Now, as she, Evangeline, and some of the others set about making dinner, she couldn't resist a peek here and there at the letters and diaries she had been allowed to find.

"This is a great treasure," Ishizu said. She was sitting at the table and carefully spreading out the letters to see them better. "They've all been so perfectly preserved for so many decades."

"I know," Angelique said. "I'm happy to have them in any case, but I do wish they'd explain something of the history of this house beyond the writers talking about just how much they love it. Although I guess that at least explains a little why they keep staying on."

"Sounds like it explains a lot to me," Joey said with a shiver.

"And of course, no last names are mentioned," Evangeline sighed in resignation. "It's unreal!"

"I'm sure I'll find some if I keep reading," Angelique said. "There has to be some indication of whose house this was!" She stirred some soup as she scanned through a diary. "Aha! This one talks about the writer's sister getting married! It's the same name as on the wedding invitation!"

"So that means a Leichter wrote that," Téa realized.

"It still doesn't prove anything," Mai pointed out. "What if her whole family moved into the Germaine house when she got married?"

". . . Well, at least it probably means Leichters were living in the North wing," Téa said.

"But are they the ones who linger on or are they Germaines? Other people could have used those rooms at some point," Angelique said.

Serenity idly picked up another letter. ". . . Hey, this talks about the sun shining into her North wing bedroom in the evening!" she exclaimed. "And it was written in 1805. So we know the North wing was normal that far back!"

"The wedding took place before that, didn't it?" Ishizu asked.

"I think it was the late 18th Century," Mai said.

"Wow, there's a lot of history in here," Serenity said. "She's talking about how she feels about the Louisiana Purchase."

"That's kinda cool," Mokuba said.

Yugi sighed, his thoughts occupied.

Téa looked to him. "Yugi? . . . You're worried about Atem, huh?" As Yugi had figured, Atem had readily agreed to trying to see Dove in the hospital, and he had already left with Yami Bakura to try to.

Yugi nodded. "I guess this Dove guy doesn't seem like much of a threat when Dr. Raven keeps knocking him out, but on the other hand . . . he put a lot of people in town under a spell! Not to mention what he did by putting that evil spirit up to torturing Lector. He must be really dangerous."

"Well, hopefully he won't be feeling up to causing trouble," Téa said. "And Atem can handle him. You know that." She smiled. "And Yami Bakura's there too. So . . . double whammy."

"Yeah. . . . But I'll feel a lot better when they're back here again," Yugi said.

xxxx

Atem was tense on the drive to the hospital. He had already thought about seeing Dove before Yugi had brought Gansley's suggestion to him, and he had thought of many of the things the Big Five had worried about. Despite him haplessly falling prey to Dr. Raven twice in one day, Atem was sure he was far more dangerous than they were giving him credit for being. After all, many of their group, formidable as they were, were not immune to being attacked either.

"If Dove hadn't been so hard to find, I could have taken care of him," Yami Bakura growled. "But he was already being taken away in an ambulance before we could uncover his location. Raven hid him well."

Atem sighed, leaning on the inside of the door as he rubbed his face. "So many villains . . . and plot twists. . . . It _has_ been hard to keep track of everything. But it's most certainly true that we still need to know how and why Dove is aware of the elemental rings. We can't let him get them. Nor can we allow him to attempt another widescale effort to get them. He might come to Domino City and use his mind-control spell there next."

Yami Bakura scowled. "That's all we need!"

As soon as he pulled in at the hospital, Atem leaped out and headed inside. By the time Yami Bakura parked and came in too, Atem was talking with the receptionist, who was scrolling through a page of information on her computer screen.

"I'm sorry," she said. "The patient you want to see, Mr. Dove? He disappeared from his hospital room."

Atem snarled. "No!"

"He wasn't released?" Yami Bakura frowned.

"No. In fact, after two concussions in one day, we were going to insist he stay here for observation at least overnight, maybe longer," the receptionist said. "But he woke up a few minutes ago and poof! He managed to sneak out himself. The doctor found him gone and there's no trace of him anywhere!"

". . . Thank you." Atem turned away from the desk, overwhelmed. ". . . I wonder if it really was 'poof,'" he muttered. "What if he has the same teleportation power Dr. Raven does?"

"Then we have a problem." Yami Bakura grabbed his keys. "Call Yugi. Tell him Dove could be in the house right now. We'll get back as fast as we can."

Atem shakily nodded, pulling out his phone as they ran.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter Seventeen**

By the time dinner was ready, Johnson was sitting up and Lector had retrieved his glasses. Crump brought the food in for all of them on TV trays and they settled down to eat.

"We'll probably have to vacuum when we're done," Nesbitt grunted, just barely catching a crumb before it would have fallen off the tray to the floor. "Do they have a Roomba?"

"You know, I'm not sure," Lector said. "I figured their maid took care of things like that."

"Yeah, probably," Nesbitt said. "I just don't want it to look like we're sloppy eaters."

"You know what's kind of creepy?" Crump said as he started to eat. "Thinkin' that on the other side of the wall over there is the North wing."

Gansley grunted. "Is there any particular reason you decided to share that with us, Crump?" It was something they of course all knew, but hadn't consciously stopped to think about. It was disturbing, alright, considering how unfriendly the spirits were in there.

"I just suddenly thought about it," Crump said.

Nesbitt scowled. "I wish the spirits would stop being so picky and realize that none of us mean them any harm."

"Or maybe they're just petty and hate us because I and Evangeline are Leichters," Lector said. "The fact that Angelique was able to go in by herself without any trouble says to me that those spirits must be Germaines."

"Probably," Gansley agreed. "But when we still don't know what really happened in the past, who knows for certain about anything?"

The others had to sadly concede to that truth.

They were just finishing their meal when their phones dinged with incoming texts. Lector got his out first, and quickly went stiff. "Oh no. . . ."

"I always hate hearing that," Crump said. "What's gone wrong now?" He dug in his pocket for his phone.

"Mr. Dove has vanished from the hospital," Lector groaned. "He's probably on his way here. And if he has teleportation powers like Dr. Raven seems to have, he may be here right now!"

Johnson slapped his forehead. "'Oh no' is right."

"Can't we ever catch a break?!" Crump exclaimed.

Lector got up and went to the door. "I had better make sure everyone saw this message on their phones and knows to be alert."

The door flew open in the next instant as Mokuba ran in and nearly crashed into him. "Lector!" He held up his phone, fear in his eyes. "What are we gonna do?!"

"I don't know," Lector sighed. It was a relief to see Mokuba safe. He could picture Dove trying to use the boy as a bargaining chip to get the rings. And after all the times Mokuba had been targeted by various villains, Lector hated to think what effect it would have on Mokuba's emotional well-being. "Where's your brother?" he asked.

"He's talking to the servants and trying to make sure the alarm system's going and all the safety measures have been taken," Mokuba said.

"But if Dove's teleported in, what good's any of that?!" Crump exclaimed.

"I guess there's no security cameras," Nesbitt sighed. Evangeline hadn't mentioned any, and he certainly hadn't seen any.

Mokuba shook his head. "She'd like to rewire the house to have them, but that's a huge project and there just hasn't been time. There's a couple for outside, though."

Lector nodded. "At least that's something." He imagined Evangeline also hated the thought of tearing up all the walls to thread new wiring across the house. The mansion was so old and filled with history.

The ghosts probably wouldn't like it being renovated either.

"Everyone should gather together and not wander off," Gansley said. "Mr. Kaiba and we will try to protect them with our rings, especially while the other magic holders aren't back yet."

Johnson nodded. He hadn't felt like he could see anyone yet, but under these circumstances he would have to.

". . . I just had a thought," Lector said. "I suppose it's futile, but what if we try to ask the spirits in the North wing for their assistance? Maybe Angelique could approach them."

"What if not only that, but we also gather in the North wing to wait for Dove's attack?" Gansley suggested.

"Is that really a good idea?" Johnson asked in concern.

"Angelique could point out to them that if Dove defeats us, he'll probably move into the house himself, seeking whatever secrets it has yet to yield. We have only sought those secrets to protect each other, but he would do it for power. When they've been so stubborn about not revealing the truth, would they really want someone with less than stellar motives to start looking for it?" Gansley said.

"On the other hand, maybe they'd think they'd let Dove kill us and then they'd kill him," Nesbitt muttered.

"I don't think they've ever done anything malevolent," Lector said. "It was Gozaburo who acted out like that." He looked to Gansley. "I say it's worth a try."

Gansley nodded in approval. "Then let's get everyone together in the living room and Angelique can try to talk to them."

It didn't take long to bring everyone together in the living room. Lector was relieved to see that everyone in the house was present; if Dove was here, he hadn't found a hostage.

Evangeline's eyes flickered with worry as Angelique unlocked the doors into the North wing. "Is this really a good idea?"

"Well, we know these spirits care about the house, if nothing else," Angelique said. "The threat of someone coming in who really might hurt the house might be enough to make them want to help us."

"Man, I hope you're right," Joey gulped. "I don't like the thought of trusting a bunch of unfriendly stiffs!"

Angelique drew a deep breath and stood in the doorway. "I'm sorry to bother you again when I know you want to be left alone," she began, "but we have trouble here that concerns you. Someone wants the elemental rings my friends have. He would no doubt also like to get hold of whatever secrets this house holds about _vodun_ spells and anything else he could use for power. If you let him kill my friends, you'll probably suffer too. I know you love this house, so even if only for that reason, please help us keep this man away! We need to take shelter in the North wing to try to surprise him."

Everyone could feel the spirits' annoyance and distaste at Angelique's announcement. But when the extreme feeling of being unwanted didn't arise, they took it as a good sign.

"Come on, everyone!" Angelique exclaimed, gesturing wildly as she hurried inside the entryway of the wing.

The group immediately followed. They positioned themselves with the ring holders in front, protecting everyone else. Then Angelique pulled the heavy doors shut. "We'll wait here and see if we can hear him," she said. "And someone should let Atem and Yami Bakura know what we're doing."

Yugi and Bakura were already typing.

Crump cast an uneasy look around the area. "Man, we haven't been back here since Nesbitt got hurt falling down the stairs."

Nesbitt grunted. He really didn't want vocal reminders of that; he thought about it more than enough as it was.

From Lector's eyes, it was also heavily on his mind. "At least we know it was Gozaburo who caused that," he said. "It wasn't the ghosts here, even if they wanted us out."

Joey shuddered. "I just had a creepy thought," he moaned. "What if Dove zapped in here, right into the wing, and we've trapped ourselves in with him?!"

"Then wouldn't the ghosts have felt agitated or angry?" Bakura said.

Oreo meowed, looking around with wide eyes.

"Maybe they're on his side!" Joey said. "How can we really know we can trust them?!"

"We can't," Gansley had to admit.

"We just have to hope," Yugi added.

"I'm hoping, I'm hoping!" Joey exclaimed.

"Weren't we going to tell them about the death on the roof being an accident?" Téa suddenly remembered.

"Only we figured they probably already knew and it didn't help their feelings about Leichters," Evangeline said. "I guess we could still talk to them about it, but since they just let us in anyway, maybe we should leave it at that. Bringing up what happened on the roof might make them mad, if they care about that at all. I wish we really knew for sure why they were so upset. Maybe it has nothing to even do with that!"

"But then what could it be?" Serenity frowned.

"We might never know," Evangeline sighed.

It was hard to say how long they stayed there, tense, listening for any sound of someone on the other side of the doors. They could feel the ghosts all around them, but none of the spectres made any move to do a thing. The phantoms of the past remained as they were, content to stay anonymous in the house they refused to leave.

Serenity tried to get her mind on something else by turning to look at the rooms around them. It would really be nice if this wasn't a grim situation and the ghosts would just let them explore. Every one of the rooms looked like an intriguing puzzle to be uncovered. But if it wasn't a potential life-and-death problem, the ghosts most likely wouldn't let them be here at all.

A footfall in the main part of the house brought everyone to attention. They badly wanted it to be Atem and Yami Bakura coming back, but the front door hadn't opened. It was either another ghost . . . or something far worse.

"Now just what are you all doing?" came a cold and mocking voice. "You can't hide forever. You know I'll find you."

Nesbitt clenched a fist. It was so tempting to go out and face their enemy, but even with his impulsive nature he knew that was foolish. He stayed quiet, his eyes flashing.

"I know you're probably thinking you can outmatch me, being that there's so many more of you and all." The footsteps came closer to the double doors. "But that kind of thinking will just get you killed even faster. If my son can't marry into the Leichter family, I'll just have to take what I want by other means. My victims talked about my wanting the elemental rings. I'll take them off your stiff, dead fingers. And do you want to know how? I'll just call upon every spirit in this house to help me!"

"I knew it!" Evangeline hissed. "I'll bet he has some spell to control spirits!"

Now the spirits were beginning to come to attention. Their rising anger could be felt among everyone present, which only made those living grow more tense and worried. What if the spirits _could_ be controlled? What would they ever do?

The double doors flew open wide without warning. Dove wasn't standing anywhere near them, but he had flung out both arms, apparently commanding them open with a spell. "So, there you all are," he sneered. "You were so desperate to hide from me that you went right into the lions' den."

"Oh, we weren't hiding from you," Evangeline sneered right back. "We were preparing our own attack."

"You're going to pay for everything you did to Lector," Nesbitt snarled.

"Oh yes, I know I did quite a lot," Dove smiled. "Really, I'm surprised he's on his feet right now."

"Protecting my loved ones gives me more strength," Lector said coldly. "But I know that's not something you would know about or understand."

"Not really," Dove agreed. "Now, protecting myself and my investments . . . _that_ I understand." Nevertheless, he stumbled before catching himself. "Alright, spirits. Now I command you to come to me and fight these people who invaded your home! You know you've never wanted them here! Get rid of them!"

Mokuba gripped Seto's hand. "No!"

Angelique's heart raced faster, but she held her ground. "They're not going to attack," she insisted. "They're stronger than your spell."

"Not to mention, I doubt you're strong enough to cast it," Gansley remarked as Dove staggered again and brought a hand to his head.

"Well, isn't this nicely ironic?" Tristan said. "After everything you did to Lector, this time you're the one at the point of collapse."

"Before you pass out, how about you tell us how you even know about the elemental rings?" Crump said.

Dove scowled. "I read about them in Dr. Raven's book. Then I was furious he hadn't shared that knowledge with me!"

"And that's what broke up your stage act?" Crump guessed.

"Yes," Dove said. "But I didn't care then. I wanted all the objects in his book! Once I knew the elemental rings had surfaced at long last, I had to have them."

"Well, you ain't gonna get 'em," Crump sneered.

Dove clenched his teeth. "Spirits!" he yelled again. "Come to me!"

Suddenly the spirits were indeed coming to him—but as an offensive force. They attacked with one mind and body, charging him head-on as they overwhelmed his mental strength. He gasped in pain and shock as he fell back, clutching his chest.

The six ring holders promptly surrounded him.

"Surrender now and perhaps you won't be further hurt," Gansley sternly told him. "As you can see, the spirits don't take kindly to their home being invaded by _you._"

"Nor do we," Lector added. "But we're not cruel like you are."

"Although some would say that striking back at you any way we could would be justice," Johnson said. "I can't say I disagree."

Seto narrowed his eyes. "Your childish attempts to drive Lector to a collapse also caused my brother to see something horrible. I won't forgive that."

Dove took a step back and walked into the other two ring holders.

"And you know something?" Crump said. "I agree with Johnson. I think we've got a right to really show you what for."

Nesbitt's expression was twisted with rage. "And I don't forgive either," he said. "Especially people like you."

Now Dove finally looked afraid instead of amused and mocking. "What are you going to do?!" he exclaimed.

"Oh . . . I think locking you in the North wing would be good," Crump said. "For starters."

Terror filled Dove's eyes. "No!"

"Just a minute ago you _wanted_ to be with the ghosties," Crump smirked. "Now you're saying you don't?"

"Of course I don't!" Dove cried. "Not if I don't have the power to control them! They'll destroy me!"

Gansley gave him a hard look. "Do you know that for certain, or are you only guessing because you know what kind of a person you are and you expect the same foul play from others?"

"I . . . just don't put me in there with them!" Dove wailed.

"Then maybe you'd rather fight like a man," Nesbitt growled. "I'll take you on anytime."

Dove held a hand to his forehead. "I . . . I can't fight," he protested.

"Just with spells, huh?" Seto snorted. "Pathetic."

"So what really are you guys going to do with him?" Téa wondered. They surely wouldn't really do anything to endanger his life if he didn't make another move to attack them . . . although she couldn't blame any of them for their anger and their attempts to scare him.

". . . Good question," Seto grunted. "Nothing seems good enough."

Suddenly Dove's lips twisted in a cruel taunt. "Or maybe none of you really have the nerve!" he countered. "Even knowing you could easily overpower me right now, you still wonder if I have something else up my sleeve. And of course you'd be right!"

"You're bluffing," Johnson said. "I've been a lawyer for years. I can detect a bluff when it's used."

Dove snarled and pushed through them, then turned to face them. "Even if I can't call the spirits to me, I have other powers I can use! I could destroy you all with one fell swoop! You'll regret not taking me seriously!" He started to raise both hands and chant.

"A verbal spell won't work if we can't hear it!" Nesbitt called, remembering Phillipe's words from the past day.

All the ring holders lunged, with Lector being the one to cover Dove's mouth while the others restrained him. The man struggled, fixing them all with a look of utter hatred and anger. But without warning, his eyes rolled back into his head and he sank against those holding onto him.

"Oh my goodness! What happened?!" Bakura exclaimed.

Lector reached to check Dove's pulse. "I would say he just collapsed himself," he said. "He's just been pushing himself too far after all the injuries he took today."

"Well, ain't that just too bad," Crump smirked.

"I'll call the police and the hospital," Gansley said, taking out his phone.

Johnson nodded, delight flashing in his eyes. "We can get him on breaking and entering and trespassing. I just wish there was some way to bring attempted murder charges against him."

Nesbitt bent down, looking at a book that had just fallen out of Dove's pocket. "Maybe there even is," he mused.

Everyone gathered around to see the book.

"_How to Completely Annihilate Your Enemies with Black Magic_?!" Téa gasped.

"I don't think that's ever gonna make the Bestseller list," Crump said.

The front door banged open as Atem ran in, followed by Yami Bakura.

Yugi's and Bakura's eyes filled with relief.

"Atem!" Yugi cried.

"You're back safe!" Bakura exclaimed.

"We got here as fast as we could," Atem gasped.

". . . But it looks like you handled this situation without us," Yami Bakura remarked.

"Oh, I would say Mr. Dove defeated himself," Lector drawled. "He really shouldn't have left the hospital."

xxxx

Before the paramedics came to collect Dove, Atem performed a Mind Crush. It would keep the man out of their way for a while, and they had to hope it would have better results than it had with Darcy.

"Well, that's that then," Mai remarked as the ambulance pulled away from the house moments later. "Are all of our enemies taken care of now?"

Yami Bakura grunted. "There's still his son. If I bring him back from the Shadow Realm, he'll need to be arrested for what he did to Marie."

"I guess we'll have to go with that," Lector said. "I'm sure she'll want to press charges."

The Infinity Ring glowed. "Fine, he's back," Yami Bakura grunted.

"I'll send for the police," Lector said, taking out his phone.

Evangeline sighed. "What a terrible weekend. I know you're all hoping to get back home as soon as possible now, and you probably wish you'd never have to come back again."

"Pretty much," Joey said.

"Joey!" Téa scolded.

"It's alright," Evangeline said. "Who can blame him?"

"Not me," Tristan said.

Serenity sighed and looked longingly to the still-open doors into the North wing. "Maybe, when the ghosts helped us and all, do you think they might let us explore a bit? I've always longed to really see these rooms and not worry about the ghosts getting mad about it or trying to hurt us. . . ."

"Well . . ." Evangeline looked doubtful. "I guess we could ask them. . . ."

"I'll ask," Angelique said. She went back to the doorway. "Thank you for your help," she told the ghosts. "I know you like your solitude, but would you be willing to at least let some of the others look at your beautiful rooms? We all love the North wing and we understand at least some of why you do too. We would just like the chance to tour your home in peace, since it's part of my and Evangeline's home. You could stay right with us and make sure we aren't doing anything you wouldn't like. We wouldn't try to open up the rooms," she quickly added. "We'd go away right after."

At first there was no response. Then, slowly, an annoyed but resigned feeling permeated among the group.

"I think it's okay," Serenity said hopefully. "Let's go!" She hurried through the doors.

"Serenity!" Joey exclaimed.

"She'll be okay," Angelique said. "They won't hurt her. Does anyone else want to see the North wing?"

"I do," Evangeline said, and marched inside in determination.

Duke shrugged and walked in, twirling a piece of hair around his finger. David warily followed.

Crump looked to his best friends. "Are any of us gonna try it out?"

"Well, why not," Gansley shrugged. "This is most likely the only time they'll be feeling so amiable."

All of the Big Five felt similarly, and they headed in as well.

Eventually almost everyone had ventured in except for Joey, and he stood scowling in the doorway. "Okay, I'm coming!" he finally said. "But I say you're all crazy!"

Seto grunted. "The only reason I'm here is because Mokuba wanted to see it."

"Hey, come on, Seto, it is pretty cool," Mokuba said. "I mean, how often do we get to see an authentic 18th Century house? It's got all the furniture and everything!"

"I didn't even know you were that interested in history, Mokuba," Seto said.

"Well, when it's right here, I think we should take advantage of it," Mokuba said.

Everyone spread out, examining whatever rooms took their fancy. Most of the rooms in the North wing were bedrooms, but there was also the sitting room Nesbitt and Johnson had discovered before, as well as other richly furnished rooms that most weren't sure what to call.

"So does anybody know the difference between a sitting room and a drawing room?" Téa asked.

"A drawing room is a place to receive visitors," Lector said. "A sitting room is more for relaxing with family and close friends."

"Figures you'd know that," Crump said with a smile.

Serenity ran her hand along the painted wall. "I wonder what it was like when all these people lived here," she mused. "Were there any ghosts yet or was everything peaceful? When and why did the ghosts in this wing come? And why this wing? Why not the whole house?"

"There are ghosts in the whole house," Mai said.

"Yeah, but they're willing to co-exist with people everywhere else," Serenity said.

"There's sure something unnatural about this place," Joey whimpered. "We'll probably never know why things go on, and that's alright by me! The ghosts don't wanna socialize with us, so why have we gotta socialize with them?!"

"We're just seeing into their world," Serenity said. "It's funny, though—some of the things in these rooms don't even look like they're from the 18th or 19th centuries. That doll on that bed there." She pointed into one bedroom. "Doesn't that look like something from maybe the 1950s?"

"You're that big an expert on old dolls, Sis?" Joey blinked.

"Sometimes I just kind of look stuff up on them," Serenity said. "It's fun!"

"It does look more recent," Evangeline admitted. "That's so strange. We know the North wing was sealed as far back as the 1860s, at least."

Crump opened a door near the end of the hall. "Hey, I don't remember us going in here before," he said. "It's a john, and even though you can tell it's old, it still looks more modern than I thought houses were back then!"

Everyone crowded around to see. Indeed, aside from the fact that everything bore older methods of construction, it had the same basic features as modern bathrooms.

"I still don't understand it, but I've read that there was indoor plumbing in ancient Mesopotamia," Evangeline said.

"That is correct," Ishizu nodded. "And it was one of the few modern features in the underground Ishtar city in Egypt."

"Fascinating!" Evangeline exclaimed.

"Well, I guess it's not that weird to find it here then," Joey said.

"Some of the wealthiest homes had it decades before anyone else did," Evangeline agreed.

"That's pretty cool," Serenity said. She walked to the end of the hall and opened another door. "What's this?"

"Looks like another bedroom," Duke said.

"Probably a girl's, judging from the floral quilt," David mused.

Serenity wandered inside. "This window faces West! It must look beautiful in here at sunset!"

Johnson stood in the doorway and peered inside. "There's two doors," he noted. "One must be the closet, but what's the other?"

Serenity opened the door nearest to her, which was on the West wall. To everyone's surprise, it opened into another room.

"I think it's a reading nook," Serenity announced as she stepped inside. "There's a wicker love seat under the window, and all these bookcases filled with books. . . ."

"And a door that must lead outside," Ishizu said.

"Probably covered in vines and unnoticed from the outside," Nesbitt said.

"Hey . . ." Serenity went to one of the bookcases and reached up, lifting down a hardback book. "This is a _Star Wars_ book! It was printed in the 1990s!"

"Say what?!" Joey boomed.

Lector stared in disbelief. "But that can only mean that someone was here very recently and actually using this room!"

"Well, we know Michel was coming in here looking for treasure," Crump said.

"Yes, but I highly doubt he stopped to sit down in this reading nook with his favorite _Star Wars_ tome!" Lector retorted. "Somebody else has been in here within the last twenty-five years or so, and the ghosts apparently let them be!"


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes: Thanks to Azalea542 for plot help!**

**Chapter Eighteen**

Baffled, and with no real way to learn the truth about what was happening in the North wing, the group slowly walked back up the hall and into the living room. Angelique stood at the doors, bringing one of them in while Evangeline took the other.

"I guess there's no chance the ghosts'll say who's been hanging out in there?" Joey said. "That kind of is something we need to know! I mean, it could be some creep!"

"Will you tell us what's been happening?" Angelique asked the ghosts, without much hope.

Silence.

"At least tell us if whoever's been in there is dangerous!" Evangeline exclaimed.

Still no answer.

Angelique's shoulders drooped. "Well, thank you for letting us look around," she said before closing and locking the doors.

"We got that outside door locked in the reading nook, anyway," Crump said. "And all the windows. They shouldn't be able to get back in!"

"Yes, but who on Earth could it be?" Evangeline leaned against the doors, frowning at the floor as she pondered the problem. "Who would the ghosts feel so good about that they would allow them to sit there and enjoy the books and even bring their own?" She looked up. "I really don't like the thought that some unknown person has probably been traipsing all over part of the house while we've been living in it!"

"I don't like it either," Lector said. "If we can, we should try to solve this before we go home too."

"It's probably all part of the same mystery we've been puzzling over this whole time," Gansley said. "Everything could be answered if the ghosts would only see fit to speak!"

"All we really know is that the only nice ghost led us to that sealed room when we tried to ask her about things," Serenity said.

"And we found the wedding invitation, a pack of love letters, and that blasted yellow ring," Gansley grunted.

"Hey," Téa said suddenly, "I just thought of something. Evangeline, isn't this house owned by people on your mother's side of the family?"

"Yes, that's right," Evangeline said.

"Well, then, why did things like that letter your grandmother wrote say 'Iris Leichter'?" Téa asked. "Wouldn't that be your dad's name that your mom's family married into?"

Evangeline smiled. "Actually, there's a very simple answer," she said. "They were both Leichters, from two different, unrelated families."

Lector nodded. "It's a strange situation, but it does happen sometimes."

"You're sure?" Joey blinked. "It sounds pretty nuts to me!"

"It happens, Joseph," Johnson said. "I could meet some girl named Johnson and very likely, she wouldn't be related to me at all!"

"Yeah, but that's a real common name," Joey objected.

"Leichter is a common enough name in Germany that they're not all related to each other," Lector said. "And oddly enough, I also learned that the spelling I chose to change the family name to is a common name in Haiti, where more of our ancestors came from."

"Oh yeah? Your dad never should've made such a big stink about that then!" Crump said.

"I most certainly wish he hadn't," Lector frowned. "That was the first thing that started driving a wedge between us."

Seto suddenly made a surprised grunt.

Mokuba started and looked over. "What is it, big brother?"

"I still had the supercomputer searching for other Germaines," Seto said. "She finally came up with something, but I don't know what to make of it." He turned his phone around. "Isn't this your mother's family line, Lector?"

Lector leaned over, staring at the information in stunned shock. ". . . Yes," he gasped.

Evangeline leaned in too. "There's Mother, and Grandmother, and Great-Grandmother . . . !" She looked up at Seto. "But I don't understand. We're all Leichters!"

"According to this, your mother's line is partially Germaine because of this kid here," Seto said, pointing to an unfamiliar name.

"Then maybe it's a different Germaine family line, like how ours is two Leichters," Evangeline said.

"Only it's not," Seto grunted. "The supercomputer also traced these Germaine names, and look." He swiped to another page and pointed to a Germaine family tree.

"Baptiste Germaine," Lector read in disbelief. "Dr. Raven's real name. . . ."

". . . So Dr. Raven started all that dumb rivalry stuff up again and he was actually fighting against some of his own relatives?" Crump snorted. "What an idiot!"

Seto nodded. "What's more, when I traced this kid's parents . . . it's the people who got married in the wedding invitation we found."

Evangeline shook her head. "I thought that Leichter-Germaine family line stopped as soon as it started because of the death on the roof!"

"The woman was pregnant at the time but apparently chose to go back to her maiden name after the death of her husband," Seto said. "Through her child eventually came your great-great-grandmother."

Evangeline sank back into the couch. "So we're all partially Germaines. . . . Do you know what that means?!" She looked to Angelique with bright shining eyes. "We're related!"

Angelique, who had started to cringe, perked up. "You're not ashamed to be part of Dr. Raven's family?" she said in amazement. "That means more terrible relatives. . . ."

"Oh, who cares about Dr. Raven!" Evangeline exclaimed. "I'm related to my best friend!" She grinned, grabbing Angelique's hands. "This is wonderful!"

Lector had to smile. "I'm glad of it as well," he said. "It's true that there will be more bad relatives, but there will be more good ones too. I'm honored to be related to you, Angelique."

Angelique beamed. "Suddenly I have so much more family than I ever thought I had," she said. "Only . . . you were already, weren't you?"

Evangeline nodded. "We didn't have to be related to be family, but it's amazing all the same!"

". . . So I have another stupid question," Joey said. "If both parents' families were unrelated Leichters, which ones did the Germaines really hate?!"

"Maybe they just hated everybody named Leichter, whether they were in one family or the other?" Evangeline shrugged. "If they were all like Dr. Raven, they were probably illogical enough to do that."

"But coming to think about it, I've got a weird question too," Crump said. "The family business and everything your dad was so proud of . . . that's from your mom's side of the family. Why was he in charge?!"

"That sort of thing does happen," Gansley said. "A man marries into a wealthy family and takes it over. Sometimes the family won't allow the woman to run it, even if it's actually hers by right."

Evangeline frowned a bit. "Maybe I'd feel a little badly for Mother, then, that the board of directors voted her out when she tried to take over for Father. Only it's hard to feel that badly for her considering how she acted."

"In any case, I suppose we need to ask her about what Mr. Kaiba's computer found," Lector said. "I have to wonder if she knew all along that she was a Germaine and never said so."

"This information was very deeply buried," Seto said. "It wasn't on or someplace else where it could be easily accessed. If she didn't try to hide her origins, someone else definitely did."

"Maybe they figured a Leichter and a Germaine marrying and having kids was bad news and would only make things worse?" Crump said. "I'll bet it was your dad who tried to hide everything!"

"Probably," Lector said wearily.

"So, are you gonna ask your mom tonight?" Joey wondered.

"I would rather not, honestly, but on the other hand I would like to salvage what we can out of this trip, so let's get it over with and enjoy the rest of our time here." Lector took out his phone, dialed, and set it down on Speakerphone.

". . . Hello?" came Mrs. Leichter's wary voice after a moment.

"Hello, Mother," Lector said. "We were just trying to wrap up the last loose ends about everything that's happened, and we discovered two very strange things. First, there are objects in the North wing that aren't from ages past. Apparently some people have been getting in there through the years and the ghosts haven't bothered them."

"Oh?" Mrs. Leichter sounded strange, and as though she was attempting to feign surprise, but it was obvious she already knew.

"Secondly, Mr. Kaiba managed to uncover some old records showing that our family is part-Germaine," Lector continued. "Did you know about that?"

A weary and resigned sigh. "Yes, of course."

"Well, why was that buried?!" Evangeline demanded. "We had a right to know! . . . And coming to think of it, that means the Germaines should have shared in our fortune! It's theirs too!"

"And that was why it was buried," Mrs. Leichter said. "There were those in our family who didn't want to share with the Germaines after all the trouble they had caused in the past. The Leichters were ashamed that they were related to the Germaines at all and they wanted to erase every trace of it."

Evangeline made a face. "How stupid and petty can they be?! If they had just gone public about everything and given the Germaines their rightful share, maybe Dr. Raven wouldn't have started up the rivalry nonsense again in the first place!"

"Who's to say who started it, dear?" Mrs. Leichter sighed. "The Germaines were very unkind to us. Had they not been unfair in their accusations, I'm sure the Leichters would have been happy to share with them."

"Two wrongs don't make a right!" Evangeline countered. "Tomorrow I'm going right over to Marcel Germaine and telling him everything! And he'll share in the Leichter fortune, just as he should!"

"Do what you feel you must," Mrs. Leichter said in resignation.

"Are there any other secrets being kept from us, Mother?" Lector felt he had to ask.

"That was the last big one, as far as I know," Mrs. Leichter said. "Your father may have kept some secrets even from me."

"You were the one who should have run the company instead of him, aren't you?" Evangeline said.

"I was alright with letting him take over," Mrs. Leichter said. "He had a very clear vision for the company and your grandfather was impressed." She hesitated. "But I'm . . . glad you're running the company now instead of me, Evangeline. You've brought the family business back from the brink. I'm afraid I would have kept running it like your father and pushed it over the edge."

Evangeline blinked in surprise. "Well . . . thank you, Mother," she said slowly.

Lector had to smile. Maybe there really was hope of salvaging this family.

". . . So who is hanging out in the North wing?" Crump blurted. "You know, don't you?"

"I've been there sometimes," Mrs. Leichter admitted. "Usually I think it's Marie."

"So what's the difference between us? You were insistent that I hold to Grandmother's wishes and stay out of the North wing," Evangeline frowned. "Did you think the ghosts wouldn't accept me? Or did you just not want me to find out all these little secrets?"

"It was more the latter," Mrs. Leichter said, "because I knew you wouldn't keep it secret. Marie wasn't supposed to know either, but she found out by accident when she visited your grandmother and she started rambling. Marie, however, wanted it kept secret."

"She would," Evangeline scowled. "But why wouldn't the ghosts be angry with the both of you that you refused to tell the truth?"

"They probably were. But we wore _wangas_ whenever we went over and the ghosts had to stay away from us. I only went to inspect things and try to decide if it was really safe for you. Marie liked the idea of getting into the house and enjoying part of it all to herself."

"That figures," Evangeline said. "Well, you just let her know that I know now, Mother. And I'm going to change the locks. If she wants to keep coming over and reading in the North wing, she'll have to get the new key from me. If I feel like giving it to her."

"Will the ghosts let you change the locks?!" Mrs. Leichter exclaimed.

"I guess we'll find out," Evangeline said. "Since I'm not like you and Marie, Mother, maybe they'll end up liking me because I'll insist on telling the truth. Maybe they'll let me go in the North wing without having to wear a _wanga._"

"Just be careful," Mrs. Leichter said.

"They're not dangerous anyway," Evangeline said. "Just antisocial."

Everyone seemed sobered and deep in thought when the telephone call ended shortly afterwards.

"Hey, I wonder if that's why the ghosts have always been mad, because the Leichters wouldn't share with the Germaines or even let anybody know the families had merged," Crump said.

"I guess we'll find out." Evangeline bounced up. "You know, I'm not going to wait for tomorrow. I'm going to tell Marcel Germaine tonight! And I'm going to hold a press conference tomorrow and tell the world! Then we'll see what the ghosts think of that!"

"That's a great idea," Téa said. "It probably will help for the ghosts to see that you really mean what you say."

Seto grunted. "But by revealing another skeleton in the family's closet, you might cause the business's stock to go down again," he pointed out.

"I have to reveal it," Evangeline said. "If the Germaines are going to take their rightful place alongside the Leichters, everyone has to know why! I think it'll be okay."

"I hope so," Angelique said in concern.

"When I took over the family business, I was determined to right every wrong I could," Evangeline said. "This is a big wrong." She smiled at Seto. "And thank you so much for helping me to find it, Mr. Kaiba!"

Mokuba grinned. "Seto's awesome technology always comes through."

Crump leaned back and shook his head. "Wow, this case has just been full of ups and downs all over the place. Of course, that always seems to happen to us."

"And there have also been a great deal of hateful feelings accumulated during this case," Gansley remarked. "All completely understandable."

Nesbitt sighed and looked down. "I don't know how to not hate people like Dr. Raven and Dove and Darcy. . . ." He clenched a fist. "And yet . . . I don't want to see any of us go down that path again." He looked up. "I can't watch you sink into the darkness again, Lector, or you, Crump, or any of us. I don't want to either. I've seen what it is to live in the light again and I never want to go back to the darkness. But . . . how do we not?"

"It's true what you said earlier, Mr. Nesbitt, about forgiveness not always happening all at once," Serenity said. "I think that if you really don't want to go back to hating people and letting it consume you, you won't. You have too much love and light in your lives to fall into the darkness again. If you ever need a little help, we're always here." She indicated herself and the other teens and Mokuba. "We won't let you fall."

"That's right!" Mokuba insisted.

Lector smiled. "We're in good hands, Nesbitt. I believe them. We'll be alright."

Nesbitt looked to him. "But you've been saying yourself how you've been coming to hate these people too. . . ."

"That's true, I am," Lector said. "And I will probably struggle with that for a while. But I don't want to feel that way. I most certainly don't want it to consume me. So I'm going to try to make a conscious effort to try to focus on other, positive feelings when I feel the anger and hate start to get hold of me again."

"And even if we manage not to be consumed by hate, can we really forgive these people?" Nesbitt wondered. He dug his hands into his hair. "It's never easy for me to forgive at all, but especially in a situation where the people are so unrepentant and don't care about what they did."

Tristan nodded in complete agreement. He struggled the same way.

". . . Have you ever really forgiven Seto?" Mokuba had to ask.

Nesbitt looked to him. ". . . Sometimes I'm still not sure," he confessed. "I'm still angry about things that happened in the past. But I don't think I'm angry at the Seto Kaiba of the present-day."

"That's about how I feel about all of you," Seto said. "We all wronged each other. I suppose ultimately we could lay the blame at Gozaburo's feet, since I would have trusted you if not for his teachings and you probably wouldn't have even agreed to try to take over the company with me if he hadn't mistreated you. But we still each made our own decisions. I do regret what I did to all of you. And I know you regret what you did to me and others. As far as not forgiving, I know I haven't forgiven Gozaburo and I don't know if I ever can."

"You can be angry about hurtful actions and still forgive the actual people," Atem said. "I can't blame you for still having trouble forgiving Gozaburo. What he did was abominable."

"And yet I can't make myself hate him," Lector said quietly. "Not when I know he truly loved his son and losing him just snapped him. And when I know that losing the company took any remaining sanity he had left, and all of us did that to him."

"Well . . . maybe that's the key to forgiving, then," Serenity said. "Seeing everybody like a human being."

"It's harder when you've never seen their good side," Lector said. "With someone like Darcy, I'm afraid I wonder if she even has one. Even though logically I know she must have one somewhere."

"Darcy is a perfect example of someone completely twisted and warped by selfishness and hate," Atem said.

"And I don't want to think about her right now," Johnson shuddered.

Gansley laid a hand on his shoulder.

"There are no easy answers when it comes to forgiveness, I suppose," Atem said. "Sometimes it's certainly easier than other times."

Tristan nodded. "With me, it's usually harder," he admitted, frowning at the floor.

"But so many of us here were in need of forgiveness and we received it, deserved or not," Marik said quietly.

"It _is_ easier when people show they want to change," Tristan said. "I know we're supposed to forgive regardless, but I don't see any shame in it taking longer sometimes."

"Especially if you're trying," Serenity added.

"And we _are_ trying," Gansley said.

Crump stretched. "Well, while we're trying, I think I'm gonna go upstairs, paw through those boxes we got from the cabin, and go to bed. You wanna see in the boxes this time, Lector?"

Lector finally shrugged. "Alright. I suppose I might as well. I imagine I've forgotten most of what's in there. And now that things actually are looking up with my mother and Adele, the thought of it doesn't make me as sad as it did."

"That's great to hear!" Crump grinned.

"I'd like to see too," Nesbitt said.

"Let's go then!" Crump got up and headed for the stairs.

Gently amused, Gansley followed, as did the rest of the Big Five.

"Would you like to come too, Evangeline?" Lector asked.

She smiled, a bit sadly. "I think you boys should have some time to yourselves after all this chaos that being here has brought you."

"But we'll be going home soon," Lector pointed out. "I would like to spend some happy times with my sister while I can." He held out his hand. "Come with us. Please?"

Evangeline beamed. "Démas. . . ." She took his hand. "I'd love to." Laughing, she bounded upstairs with him and the others.

Angelique smiled. "That will be nice for her. Evangeline always wants to see her brother so badly, but then things always go wrong when he's here."

"You guys really should come visit us in Domino City," Téa said. ". . . Of course, things go wrong there a lot too." She sighed.

"But at least there's not a situation like here, where Lector's family turned against him," Angelique said.

Mokuba shuddered. "Yeah, that's sure true. That's why New Orleans has been such a sad place for him to visit." He smiled. "But I think it's gonna be happier for him now, if his mom and Adele really meant what they said."

"I want to believe they do," Angelique said. "Although I'm probably going to be wary of them for a while."

"Same here," Joey nodded.

Angelique got up from the couch. "Well . . . are all of you planning to go to bed now or would you like to stay up a while?"

"Well . . ." Serenity looked around. "I guess it's crazy after everything, but I'd kind of like to just walk through the house when there's nothing we need to solve or find. It's such a beautiful house and I'd like to really enjoy it."

"I would enjoy that as well," Ishizu said. "There is so much history here."

Angelique smiled. "I can certainly take whoever wants to on a tour, or maybe they would rather just explore by themselves. That's fine too."

"I'd like to just wander for now," Serenity said. "But not alone. Duke?" She smiled at her beau.

"I'll come with you," Duke agreed.

Joey scowled.

". . . You know, I think what I'm up for is a late-night snack," Angelique said. "Any takers?"

Yami Bakura's eyes immediately lit up. "Of course."

Bakura chuckled. "You'd know Yami would go for that. It sounds quite good, I must admit."

"Let's do that," Tristan said, locking an arm around Joey to drag him to the kitchen.

"Tristan . . ." Joey frowned at him. "You're just tryin' to distract me from Serenity goin' off with her boyfriend!"

". . . No, I'm trying to distract myself," Tristan grunted.

Yugi gave him a sympathetic smile. It still hurt Tristan that Serenity had chosen Duke, but he was trying to deal with it. That was all one could do, sometimes.

xxxx

The night was clear and cool, and as Serenity looked out across the property and to the city beyond from the widow's walk roof, somehow everything seemed peaceful and not eerie.

"Well?" Duke spoke up from behind her as he drew an arm around her shoulders. "What do you think?"

"It's beautiful," she said softly. "Duke . . ." She turned to face him. "Do you think the ghosts from that horrible scene ever come up here to enjoy the view? You'd think now that they're both dead, they could move on and be happy together again."

"Were they ever happy?" Duke mused, twirling a piece of Serenity's hair around his finger. "There's still a lot we don't know about what happened. Just because she didn't want to kill him doesn't mean they had a happy marriage. They _were_ arguing up here. Maybe they were going to get a divorce."

She made a face. "You still have to be so cynical sometimes." She hit him lightly on the shoulder.

"I'm just being realistic." Duke drew her close to him.

Serenity smiled as she looked up at him. "I'm so glad everything worked out alright with David," she said. "I was so worried for him . . . and for you. I knew you wouldn't be able to stand it if anything else happened to him."

"No, I wouldn't. But I just want to focus on how everything's okay now." Duke leaned down, kissing her on the lips.

Serenity threw her arms around his neck as she returned it.

Yes, everything was okay now, with all of them. And hopefully this time when they returned home, they would all feel more encouraged and hopeful than weary and beat-down.

Especially Lector.


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes: Something just didn't feel resolved, and I ended up expanding this chapter and moving the final scene to a separate epilogue section.**

**Chapter Nineteen**

Lector settled on one of the beds in Crump's shared room and watched his friend dig through another of the boxes taken from the shelves in the cabin's closet. "What are all these pictures?" he said in disbelief. "I didn't even realize I was that interested in drawing, but it's starting to seem like that was my passion as a boy."

"That's pretty neat, though," Crump said. "Yeah, it looks like you must've been drawing a picture a day for a while there!" He set a stack of old papers on the edge of the bed.

Evangeline picked them up and started to pore over them with care. "These are so cute!" she gushed. "And it looks like you drew the Berserk Dragon a lot, Démas. I wonder if it used to come out of its dimension all the time just to watch over the family."

"Yeah, we still don't know how the Berserk Dragon got hooked up with your family, Buddy," Crump said to Lector.

"And we may never know," Lector remarked. "It seems like that kind of family history should be preserved somewhere, but I don't know where."

"Perhaps sooner or later we'll stumble across it somewhere in this house," Gansley said.

"Are we even going to be coming back here any time soon?" Johnson wondered.

"I'm not planning on it," Nesbitt grunted.

"I think next time, we should come out there," Evangeline said. "But the way things go, you might get called out here again for some reason or another." She sighed. "Like what Mother did this time. . . ."

"Well . . . at least things are turning out better than they have other times we've been here," Crump said.

Lector had to agree. "It actually seems like I'll be able to reunite with some of the family," he said. "And it is interesting to see all of these things I drew."

"Especially the stuff you drew with you and Nesbitt!" Crump chirped.

Lector smiled. "I'm glad to be able to retrieve those things."

"They're priceless treasures!" Evangeline declared.

"I don't know if I would go that far, when I made them," Lector mused, "but they _are_ irreplaceable."

"What's this one?" Nesbitt picked up a drawing that featured a small child riding on the Berserk Dragon while Lector observed on the ground.

Lector looked over. "I do believe that's supposed to be you being brought back to New Orleans by the Berserk Dragon," he said.

"You know, I think we really should try to ask Grandmother about the Berserk Dragon before you leave," Evangeline said. "You never know; she might just remember something important! She remembered about the Germaines being part of our family."

"It would be worth investigating," Gansley mused.

Lector nodded. "Let's visit her tomorrow," he said. "I still need to see Gabriel too."

"Oh yes, you should!" Evangeline agreed. "He's always talking about you."

"He barely even knows me," Lector said in amazement.

"You don't always have to know someone really well to know they're special," Evangeline said softly. "I didn't know you that well before all those horrible things started happening last year. But I knew I loved you very much."

"And you were there for me when the rest of the family wasn't," Lector said. "You can't imagine how much that meant to me."

"I only wish I'd realized sooner that I wouldn't want to be under Father's thumb when he treated you so cruel," Evangeline said. "I tried and failed to find out about you both when you were in that coma and when you got out of it. He always caught and stopped me. Why did I let that be the end of it?"

"You still loved the man and respected him as the head of the family, even though you didn't agree with what he was doing," Lector said. "I suppose you just didn't fully realize then how he was poisoning the family."

"I should have, though!" Evangeline exclaimed. "Hurting and ostracizing you could never be right!"

"Well . . . it's in the past now," Lector said. "We're moving on, and your love and support has meant everything to me. If coming here didn't mean seeing you, I don't think I could have made myself do it these last few times."

"Only you would have had to at least when it came to the court trials," Nesbitt remarked.

"Sadly true," Lector sighed. Having to testify against his own father was a hurtful memory he would always have to live with.

Evangeline snuggled close and reached for another picture. "I think we should take some of these to show Grandmother," she said. "It might help jog her memory."

"Couldn't hurt," Crump chirped.

Lector nodded. "We'll take the one that has the writing about the dragon being my 'imaginary' friend. And maybe this one of it bringing Nesbitt back to me."

"Say, what did Grandmother think of your being friends with 'Robbie'?" Evangeline wondered. "She seems like the kind of person who would have insisted your parents nurture the friendship."

"She was," Lector said. "She was very happy for me. But . . ." Sadness flickered in his eyes. "That was right when her mind was starting to go. She didn't stay alert and aware of things for too long after I met Nesbitt back then. If she had, I am certain she would have insisted on the families exchanging addresses and staying in touch, even though Nesbitt was too young to write yet." He smiled at Nesbitt. "Would you come with us, Nesbitt? I would like to show Grandmother the old pictures and try to explain to her that I found Robbie again."

Nesbitt flushed. The thought of interacting with someone whose mind was often not all there made him very uncomfortable. But he supposed Lector and Evangeline would be handling the majority of the conversation, and he could see this meant a lot to Lector. So he slowly nodded. "Yeah, I'll come," he said.

"Thank you," Lector said. "I promise you won't have to talk much." While he didn't expressly know Nesbitt's feelings about this specific type of meeting, he knew Nesbitt was still extremely introverted and hated having to make conversation unless it was about machines in some form. He didn't want to put his friend on the spot in talking to his grandmother, but he did hope that seeing him would pierce through her confusion and impress upon her that this was Robbie.

Evangeline looked over at Johnson, who was sitting on the other bed with Crump and Gansley. "Oh . . . Mr. Johnson, how are you doing?" she asked in concern. "You went through so much today, and then you had to interact with everyone before you really felt ready to do it. . . ."

Johnson sighed. "Well . . . it was easier than I thought it would be," he admitted. "After all, I knew none of our friends would hurt me."

"I hope it's been okay that I've been here," Evangeline said. "I was so excited to think of being able to spend some happy times with my brother that I didn't stop to think it might make you uncomfortable right now."

"I wouldn't have invited her without checking with you first, Johnson," Lector said, "only I wasn't sure you were going to look at all when you'd already seen in the boxes last night. . . ."

Johnson smiled. "I hadn't seen in all of them, but anyway, I liked the thought of doing something relaxing with you, Lector. It's been such a stressful time for all of us. I chose to be here now, and I've enjoyed it."

"I'm glad," Lector said.

The rest of their time together continued to be enjoyable. The remaining things they found didn't answer any of their continuing questions about the family, but it was sweet and fun to see what Lector had been up to as a child. He had largely forgotten most of the things he had drawn, although there were a few pictures he had vaguely remembered about and was happy to find again among them. By the time everyone drifted into their various rooms to sleep, they were feeling happy about how the day had ended and hopeful for the future.

"Is it alright that I asked you to come with us tomorrow, Nesbitt?" Lector asked as he and Nesbitt changed for bed. This time they both stayed in the room, just turning their backs to each other for modesty's sake.

". . . It's fine," Nesbitt said. "I'm glad you want me there. I . . . I just don't know how helpful I'll be. I . . ." He cleared his throat. "I try to avoid dealing with people who aren't . . . completely there. . . ."

Lector gave a sad smile. "It is hard to think about, isn't it? Gansley was very disturbed when he first learned about Grandmother. It's very difficult to see her like she is, especially knowing how she used to be. But one thing that gives me comfort is remembering how she helped me when I was lost in that blizzard. Her spirit truly does remember what her body just can't right now."

". . . This is encouraging, I guess," Nesbitt said, "but . . . it's not like you can really communicate with her like you used to." He slipped into his tank top and turned back. "Just like you couldn't with me when I didn't remember. . . ."

Lector was turning to face him too. "I know," he sighed. "It's nice to know that I will be able to talk with her sometime in the future, but . . . it's so far away. Still, it's the only comfort I have." He went over to his bed and climbed in.

Nesbitt went to his. ". . . Will she want to talk to me a lot about . . . dolls, or something?" he hesitantly asked.

"Evangeline and I will try to keep her occupied with other things," Lector said with a smile.

xxxx

The rest of the house was gradually going to bed in waves. Ishizu had also wanted to wander the house, and Marik, Rishid, and Mokuba had gone with her. They found themselves up on the third floor, curiously walking amid the mostly open rooms.

"I can still feel the ghosts watching," Ishizu remarked as they walked.

"It's pretty creepy," Mokuba shuddered. He looked to Marik. He was curious about something, but not sure he should ask.

Marik, however, picked up on the unspoken question. "What is it, my friend?" he asked.

"Well . . ." Mokuba stared as they passed the third floor kitchen and its eerie microwaves. It always felt like the microwaves themselves were watching, so Mokuba was sure there were always ghosts in this kitchen. "I was just wondering if the underground city was haunted. . . ."

Marik shook his head. "Oh yes. There were all kinds of stories about that place. And since it was lit by lanterns and candles, it created disturbing shadows and shapes in every corner and crevice." His eyes flickered. "It was the worst possible place for someone to live who was afraid of the dark."

"It sure sounds it!" Mokuba exclaimed.

"I was terrified of some of the less-traveled corridors," Marik said. "Rishid tried to show me that there was nothing to be afraid of, but I think even he started to wonder!"

"It was a place that played on one's imagination," Rishid said. "That said, I am afraid I could believe the city was haunted by many restless souls." He didn't say more, but he was thinking of the many generations of Ishtars who had lived there and died there . . . and gone mad there.

"Does anybody still live there?" Mokuba wondered. "I remember you said everything seemed deserted that time Yami Marik was torturing Yami Bakura down there. . . ."

"Strangely enough, there actually are people who live there," Marik said. "Even though the mission of the Tombkeepers was fulfilled and they didn't have to stay, they were so used to it and considered it home that they didn't want to leave."

". . . I guess that makes sense," Mokuba said slowly, although he didn't really think it seemed sensible at all. "Kind of like how Evangeline doesn't wanna leave here even though it's really creepy."

"Yes, it's like that," Ishizu said.

". . . Do any of you ever miss it?" Mokuba asked. "I know Marik doesn't, but what about you, Ishizu and Rishid?"

"It was a horrible place," Rishid said. "There are more upsetting and sad memories than happy ones. Still . . ." He sighed. "There were times when we all bonded there and those moments are very precious to me. I miss when it felt like home and I was happy there. Once our mother died, it was never the same."

"There are things I miss," Ishizu said, "but I am not sad to have left. We didn't belong there. The mission of the Tombkeepers was very brutal. Now that we are away from that life, I wonder how so many of our ancestors believed it was good and right for that horrific ritual to take place. We had documented all the times when an Ishtar went mad from the pain and torment, yet we didn't make the connection that it had to stop."

Marik stood in the doorway of the bathroom and gripped the doorframe. "I wonder a lot where Father is now, and if he still doesn't get it or if by now he regrets how he acted and how he treated Rishid."

"I hope he does," Mokuba said. "But I guess it's hard to say. Gozaburo is still filled with hate."

"Sometimes death does not clear one's mind," Ishizu agreed.

Mokuba peered around Marik at the bathroom. It was painted in yellow and was strangely laid out, with two diagonally connecting rooms. The one Marik was standing in front of had the toilet and the sink. Through the other doorway was the bathtub and another sink.

"I don't think we ever really looked at this place before," Mokuba said. "I wonder why they built it at a weird angle like this."

"I wonder if it sends people to alternate realms, such as the one on the second floor," Rishid remarked.

Marik stepped back. "Let's not find out."

Even as he moved, the two sinks suddenly came to life and water gushed from the faucets into the basins. Within moment, both were at the point of overflowing.

"What do we do?!" Mokuba yelped. "Do we try to turn them off?!"

"I think it would be wiser to move as far away from them as possible," Rishid declared.

Ishizu looked reluctant to leave the mess, but she didn't protest as they all drew back from the doorway and into the hall. When they were far enough away, both sinks shut off as abruptly as they had turned on. The basins were filled to the brim.

". . . Should we tell Evangeline about this?" Mokuba wondered, his eyes wide.

"She'll have to know," Marik agreed. "But let's not tell Joey."

". . . Yeah," Mokuba said. "Let's not." He sighed. "I guess this means the ghosts are still gonna play pranks and stuff."

"Perhaps we should leave this floor altogether," Rishid suggested.

Ishizu nodded. "I suppose we should." She walked to the end of the hall and turned back, looking towards the playroom. Evangeline had mentioned the ghosts particularly seemed to like that room, and she could definitely feel presences there now.

Mokuba grabbed at Marik's hand. He had wanted to try not to show he was afraid, but it was impossible. The house was every bit as creepy as it had been before. The only thing he could be grateful of was that there wasn't the feeling of anything outright evil, just mysterious and mischievous.

"I guess the ghosts come out more the later it gets," Marik remarked. He squeezed Mokuba's hand. "Let's go."

Ishizu was about to agree when she took notice of a door in the wall that she didn't remember them ever going through before. "Just one moment," she said. She opened it and it gave a loud creak as it opened and displayed old wooden steps going downward.

"I don't remember seeing that before," Marik said in disbelief.

"We didn't," Ishizu said. "I wonder if that means the ghosts hid it from our eyes before." She cautiously stepped forward, peering down the steps. "These may lead into the servants' quarters."

Marik looked curious, but at the same time he didn't want to do anything potentially dangerous when Mokuba was with them. "Do they look rickety?" he had to ask.

"They don't, but looks could be deceiving," Ishizu said. She placed her foot on the top stair. "It seems very sturdy."

". . . I guess there's no chance that the ghosts opened this up for a good reason," Mokuba said. "Like maybe they finally trust us because Evangeline's gonna tell everyone the truth about the families, so they're letting us see another of the house's secrets?"

"Probably not, but it's an interesting theory," Marik mused.

"It _could_ be true," Ishizu said. The explorer and preserver of history in her made her long to go down the steps and see exactly where they led. But she didn't like to do something potentially dangerous either. And she wondered if Evangeline and Angelique should be the first to go down the steps. Still, since the door hadn't been visible before, it might close up again if they went away to get the other girls.

"What seems to be down there?" Marik asked.

"It's a spiral staircase," Ishizu said. "It looks like there are at least two landings from here, and they lead in different directions." She debated with herself again before at last making up her mind. "I'm going to see." With that she started down the stairs.

"I'm not sure this is wise," Rishid said in concern.

"You and Mokuba stay up here," Marik agreed. "We shouldn't all go." He followed after Ishizu.

"Be careful!" Mokuba exclaimed.

The feeling of the ghosts watching was definitely present on these back stairs. They went down to the first landing and stood there, looking around. "So, one can either get off here and go to what is presumably something on the second floor," Ishizu mused, "or they can keep going down."

"Yes, and there are two different directions on the second floor," Marik said.

"How strange this all is," Ishizu said. "Evangeline showed us the servants' quarters, but I don't remember an old staircase like this being what was used in them."

"And if the ghosts for some reason really are letting us see this area, why?" Marik looked around with his hands on his hips. "What are we supposed to be seeing?"

Ishizu turned and stepped off the landing, walking in the direction that seemed like it might take her someplace new on the second floor. Marik chased after her, gazing in disbelief at the new sights around them. "More rooms?!"

One room in particular seemed to draw Ishizu towards it. She walked over, stepping into an old bedroom. It felt welcoming, yet sad. She stood there, gazing around the lovely space until her eyes hit upon the nightstand next to the bed. When she went over, the drawer popped open, revealing a diary.

"What's that?" Marik asked. He caught up as she was lifting it out and opening it.

"It's not in English," she said. "But judging from the date and the name, I wonder if it could be a servant of either the bride or the groom in that fateful marriage." She closed it and looked up. "Someone wanted me to see this, perhaps the original writer. Let's take it to Evangeline or Angelique and maybe they can translate it."

Marik nodded. "Alright. But I still wonder why the ghosts would suddenly be helpful . . . especially after they just got through pulling a prank."

"There are so many ghosts here. This one most likely wasn't involved with the prank," Ishizu said.

They made it safely out of the wing and up the stairs. When they were back at the top and reuniting with Rishid and Mokuba, the door remained open. It continued to as they walked towards the main stairs.

"Well, this is encouraging," Ishizu said. "Perhaps us learning the truth of the families' continuing connection truly has made at least some of the ghosts more open."

Marik still looked skeptical. "Let's hope."

Downstairs, Evangeline was helping herself to a snack as she chatted with Angelique. Both girls looked up as the small group entered. "How was the house?" Angelique asked.

"Fascinating," Ishizu said. "The ghosts opened a hidden door on the third floor and guided us to this." She held out the diary.

Evangeline took it in amazement. "What . . ." She opened it and started to skim through the entries. "Oh! This is written by the maid of the Leichter bride!" Her eyes flickered with sadness as she read deeper into the book. "It tells about the tragedy on the roof and how her mistress just couldn't recover from it. Then she discovered she was pregnant. Fearing the Germaines would try to forcefully take the child from the grieving widow, she hid the pregnancy and her sister volunteered to pretend he was her boy." She slumped back. "So the connection wasn't buried to be cruel to the Germaines or exclude them from the family fortune," she said softly.

"What a sad tale," Ishizu said. "You definitely needed to have this part of it before going public with the families' connection."

Evangeline nodded. "I want to go see these new rooms for myself. Do you think the ghosts will let me?"

Ishizu smiled. "I believe so."

xxxx

Evangeline didn't sleep much that night, occupied with the new exploration of both the rooms and the diary. But she was still bound and determined to go through with all of her plans for the day. The next morning after breakfast, Lector, Nesbitt, and Evangeline set off for the nursing home with several of the old drawings as well as the brooch with a Berserk Dragon carved into it. Along the way, Evangeline told of last night's find.

"Well, everyone was certainly right that the house hadn't given up all its secrets," Lector remarked.

"And it probably still hasn't!" Evangeline exclaimed. "Before you leave, Démas, I want to show you the new rooms!"

"I would like to see them," Lector smiled.

"So has your opinion on the family changed again?" Nesbitt had to wonder.

Evangeline sighed. "Oh, I don't know. . . . It's starting to sound like there really were wrongdoings on both sides. What an awful situation it must have been for that poor mother, fearing her child would be taken away by her husband's family, and then only getting to keep him because of pretending he was her nephew. . . ." She shook her head. "I'll make sure to tell everything I've found when I hold my press conference."

"That is the best way," Lector agreed.

It was a pleasant day, and as they arrived at the nursing home, Grandmother Leichter was sitting peacefully on the grounds, enjoying the gentle breeze through the trees and the birds flitting between them. When she saw the trio coming, she perked up.

"Démas!" she exclaimed. "Evangeline! Hi!"

"Hello, Grandmother," Lector smiled.

"How are you doing today?" Evangeline asked.

"I'm good!" Grandmother Leichter beamed. "Oh, and you brought Robbie!"

Nesbitt rocked back. "Huh?!"

Lector was stunned too. "You . . . you know?" he stammered.

Grandmother Leichter gave a firm nod. "Robbie." She smiled. "You found him again!"

"Y-Yes," Lector stammered. He sat down next to her at the table.

"But . . . how did you know?!" Nesbitt said in disbelief. "I mean . . . I'm not a kid anymore. . . . I don't look like I did then. . . ."

Lector doubted Nesbitt would get a straight answer, although he was certainly curious too. And from Evangeline's wide eyes, she was dying to know.

"You're still the same in here." Grandmother Leichter took Nesbitt's hand and placed it over his heart. "You love Démas!"

"Y-Yeah. . . ." Still baffled, Nesbitt looked to Lector, who just shook his head with a faint smile. That was probably the best explanation they would get until she could talk to them on an adult's level again.

"I used to draw pictures of us together," Lector said. "And I also drew this dragon a lot." He took out one of the drawings of the Berserk Dragon. "Do you know why?"

Grandmother Leichter's eyes lit up. "Oh! The guardian dragon! He protects us."

"Then you do know about him!" Evangeline exclaimed. "Do you know why he first started protecting us, Grandmother?"

"We needed help," Grandmother Leichter shrugged. "He always comes to look after us and goes back when he's sure we're okay. We all see him, but . . . then we forget."

"When we're older, we stop seeing him?" Evangeline supplied.

"We all forget," Grandmother Leichter said vaguely, staring off into the distance.

Evangeline looked to Lector. From her eyes, she clearly wondered whether to tell the woman what had been discovered about the family the previous night. Lector honestly wasn't sure. He had the feeling she wouldn't understand, but on the other hand, maybe her spirit would process it even if her body couldn't.

Finally Evangeline looked back. "Grandmother, do you know about the Leichters and the Germaines being related?"

"It's a secret," Grandmother Leichter said. "Shh! Your daddy will be angry you told."

"It's not a secret anymore," Evangeline said. "I'm telling everyone!"

Grandmother Leichter beamed. "Yay!"

Encouraged, Evangeline took out the diary Ishizu had found. "This tells about why it was kept secret," she said. "We found out about the horrible thing you saw on the roof and why it happened."

A shudder. "That was scary."

"Yes, it sure was," Evangeline said softly. "And it wasn't supposed to happen. It was an accident. They were married, a Leichter and a Germaine, and they were arguing. But she never meant for him to fall! This tells how she never got over it. And they had a child, a boy. She was afraid that her husband's family would try to take him away, and her sister said she'd pretend it was her son. That way, no one would know he was a Germaine and he could stay with his mother. Do you understand, Grandmother?"

Grandmother Leichter looked like she was considering all that she was being told. "That's sad," she said at last.

"It really is," Evangeline agreed.

Lector relaxed. It hadn't made her visibly upset, as their mother would have told them it would. And he had the feeling she did understand.

They visited for a while longer but didn't learn anything else. As they headed back to the car, however, they felt encouraged and buoyed up by the experience.

"It was nice to see Grandmother again," Evangeline smiled.

"I still don't understand how she recognized me, though," Nesbitt said. "I mean, it's not like I'm the only one who cares about you." He looked to Lector.

"No, but I suppose when you think about it, nobody else has exactly the same hair color as you and the same features as you," Lector said. "Even as a child, you had that dark brown hair and thicker eyebrows. Maybe somehow she just put it all together and it made perfect sense in her mind."

"I guess," Nesbitt said slowly.

"Although honestly, I think it was more that she really did sense our deep friendship," Lector said. "Each friendship is different, and I know ours really made an impression on her all those years ago." He smiled a bit. "But I know such 'illogical' reasons still don't make a lot of sense to you, Nesbitt," he playfully added.

Nesbitt grunted. "No, they don't. And I don't understand the logic behind them at all. But . . ." He gave a gruff smile. "That doesn't mean I don't like it."

Lector smiled too, and laid a hand on Nesbitt's shoulder as they walked.


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes: This is the final scene people read from the first version of chapter 19. I felt like something just wasn't resolved, so I ended up expanding chapter 19 in the middle and pushing this little scene into an epilogue by itself. Please go back and read the new content in 19!**

**Epilogue**

The rest of the day was similarly peaceful. Evangeline hadn't made it to Marcel Germaine's the prior night because of the late hour and the even newer discoveries, so she and Angelique went to talk to him about all they had learned. Lector went to Adele's to visit with Gabriel, as promised, and brought the boy back to have lunch with them and play with Mokuba. Adele was also invited, somewhat to her surprise, and she agreed. When they arrived back at the house, they found Marcel had been invited as well.

The weather was just right to cook and eat outside without being miserable, so the entire group gathered on the back patio while Angelique made lunch. Mokuba and Gabriel ran around the yard and explored while they waited.

"Don't go past the fountain!" Evangeline reminded them.

"We sure won't!" Mokuba exclaimed.

"It's so nice to actually be able to relax for once!" Téa sighed in relief as she leaned back on a beach chair.

"No kidding!" Joey declared. "We've just been kickin' back all morning. I didn't even think that was possible here!"

"Even the cemetery looks peaceful today," Serenity smiled.

". . . Eh, let's not go overboard," Joey grunted.

Lector looked to his older sister. "Adele, did you know about the Germaines being related to us?"

"Not until I came over here and Evangeline started talking about it," Adele said. "I honestly had no idea." She frowned a bit. "I wonder what other secrets this old house is hiding."

"Probably a lot," Téa said. "But it'll probably take another trip or two before we find the rest. At least."

"Or maybe we never will," Mai said. "This house and its ghosts don't give up their secrets easily."

"Well, I'm glad one of the ghosts trusted us with these new secrets," Evangeline said. "Tomorrow everyone will know the full story of the Leichter and Germaine tragedy."

"Good deal," Crump said.

"And after lunch, everyone can come see the newly open rooms, if they want to," Evangeline continued.

"I sure would!" Serenity said.

"I think we all would," Yugi smiled.

Serenity giggled. "Look at Oreo!"

Everyone turned to look. The tuxedo cat was sitting on the patio wall, staring without blinking at the meat on the grill.

"Cat," Yami Bakura grunted. But he was staring at it too.

Bakura chuckled and shook his head. "You two," he commented as he was petting Oreo.

"I wonder how things are going back home," Téa said.

"Grampa says everything's fine at the shop," Yugi said. "But he and Mom are anxious for us to get home."

"Lumis and Umbra said everything's fine at the Black Crown too," Duke said.

"The problem with everything being 'fine' is that it never lasts for long," Nesbitt grunted.

"Oh, isn't it the truth," Téa groaned.

"Well, you know what? I'm gonna enjoy it whenever it pops up!" Crump declared. He grabbed a well-done burger and started building the ingredients on the bun.

Lector smiled. "That is a very wise decision."

Yami Bakura snatched a rare burger and bit into it with relish. Crumbs flew everywhere and juices trailed down his chin. Oreo promptly jumped over and licked them up.

"Yami!" Bakura exclaimed in mortification.

"Cat," Yami Bakura growled.

"Heh." Gansley shook his head. "I suppose to some extent it's refreshing that some things never change."

"So did anyone ever figure out where that Berserk Dragon went?" Joey wondered. "Just so, you know, it's not roamin' around the city or something."

"Grandmother said it goes back to its dimension after it helps us out," Evangeline said, "so I guess that's what happened. We'll have to hope anyway."

Marcel shook his head. "What am I getting into by joining this family?" he said with a playfully amused smile.

"Well, for one thing, you're getting a lot of fun friends," Angelique said.

"And houses full of ghosts," Joey shuddered.

"You know, we still don't know for sure how and why Dr. Raven teleported out of the prison when he did," Evangeline frowned. "It still doesn't make sense that he didn't do it before if he could always do it."

"Maybe he was waiting to catch everyone off-guard?" Johnson suggested. "They'd be expecting tricks from him at first, but if he waited, no one would be thinking he'd try something."

"That makes sense," Marik said.

Mokuba and Gabriel came running back to claim the food. "It smells really good over here!" Mokuba grinned.

"Good, because it's ready," Angelique smiled. "Help yourselves, everyone! Some of you already have been."

The group all gathered around, getting in line to acquire burgers, hot dogs, and all the trimmings. Oreo happily munched on a burger as well.

"Well," Yugi smiled, "I'd say things really are ending alright for all of us."

"I agree," Lector said. "This trip started horribly and went progressively downhill. But it's become very happy in many ways."

"I'm glad, Uncle Démas!" Gabriel grinned. "I want you to be happy!"

Moved, Lector drew an arm around the boy. "Just you saying that makes me very happy," he said.

Gabriel hugged him around the neck.

Crump snapped a picture. He wanted that sweetness saved for years to come. And, he was sure, Lector would too.

Adele smiled. "Not everyone was affected by the tragedies of this family. I'm so glad Gabriel is still pure."

"I believe this family can rise again," Ishizu said. "It has been splintered, but not broken. It is very encouraging that you and your mother want to make amends now. Perhaps someday, Marie and the other boys will as well."

"I don't know about them," Adele sighed. "Phillipe's feelings run very deep. But let's not think about that right now."

"Yeah!" Joey agreed. "Let's think about food!"

"You always think about food," Mai remarked.

"Because it's a great thing to think about!" Joey defended.

"And safe," Tristan added.

"And delicious," Crump grinned.

Lector laughed. "Well, I can't disagree there. And Angelique is very skilled at making delicious food since she owns her own restaurant."

"She does," Nesbitt agreed. "And I've always enjoyed your cooking as well."

"You cook, Lector?" Téa said in surprise.

"From time to time," Lector said. "I make a pretty mean gumbo."

"You are totally making that for us when we get home!" Joey declared.

"I think every family has their own gumbo recipe," Angelique remarked, "and sometimes each family member does too. But I got hold of the recipe Lector uses and I think that's my favorite." She smiled. "I'd like to offer that in the restaurant."

"You are certainly welcome to it," Lector said.

"Does that mean you'd get royalties every time she makes it?" Joey asked.

"Joey!" Téa exclaimed.

"What? I'm just asking!" Joey defended.

"Well, for the here and now, this food is just great," Téa beamed.

Everyone echoed their agreement. There would no doubt be more chaos to deal with sooner or later, but for now, all was peaceful and the group could happily enjoy their time together.

"Hey," Mokuba said suddenly, "do you guys see that?"

All eyes looked to where he was pointing. For a brief moment it appeared as though several transparent figures were standing by and observing the gathering. They had come out from around the nearby trees and stood there, expressionless, but there were no ill feelings from their presence. Then, in a shimmer, they were gone again.

"_G-Ghosts!"_ Joey wailed.

"It's okay, Joey," Serenity said. "They were nice ghosts. I think they wanted to let us know they're happy with all of us being together."

"I think so too," Evangeline mused.

Lector looked thoughtful. Perhaps the family, living and dead, would be united at last. It was long overdue.

"I wonder if the ghosts will stop watching us and trying to trick us into going into alternate floor plans," Atem said.

"I'd love if they'd have mercy on us like that," David said. "Maybe seeing them like this means they're giving their blessing?"

"Or what if they're saying we're doing too much on their property?" Joey worried.

"Ugh. Let's not worry about it," Mai said.

"I'm going to take it as a positive sign," Evangeline said. "But I won't be surprised if they keep watching us, at least."

"Hey, what are we going to do about that yellow ring?" Duke wondered, deciding they should change the subject.

"I think we should take it with us for now," Yugi said. "Maybe it's nothing, but maybe it's important."

Yami Bakura grunted. "I couldn't find any magical properties when I scanned it."

"So it's probably not important," Tristan said. "Unless your Ring was acting up again."

Yami Bakura scowled.

"You know, there were seven Millennium Items, but only six rings," Mokuba said. "Roland's ancestor didn't have one of the rings. It's a long shot, but . . . what if this ring is for real and it was his?"

"Then why wasn't it in the box with the others?" Seto grunted.

"And what element would it represent?" Gansley wondered. "There are only six Duel Monsters elements, which is what our rings are based on."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Mokuba relented. "It was just a thought."

"It's a good thought, Mokuba," Lector said. "Hopefully we'll be able to find out what the deal is with the ring. We'll take it with us for now."

"And put it with all the other junk Shadi hasn't bothered to come for yet," Joey scowled. "Seriously, how long is he gonna make us wait?!"

"Shadi does everything on his own time table and in his own way," Rishid said with a note of disapproval in his voice. He wasn't sure he would ever forgive Shadi for misleading Marik about his father's death. But of course, he also wasn't guiltless in that matter. He had allowed the misleading to continue, fearing for Marik's sanity if he learned the truth.

"Let's just hope we will never need to use any of those objects ourselves," Atem said. "Especially the statue of Reshef."

"I'm hoping!" Joey exclaimed.

"And also hope they will not be stolen," Ishizu said.

"Speaking of items, Vivian Wong and the Paradox Brothers will be coming back soon to look for that medallion in the river," Gansley said with a scowl.

"I haven't forgotten," Lector sighed. "I must admit I am dreading it."

"Then let's forget it for now," Evangeline insisted. "Let's just enjoy today."

Lector smiled again. He could certainly get behind that, and the others felt likewise.

He leaned back, looking up at the sky. It really was a beautiful day.


End file.
